Animal Crossing: Heroes to the Rescue!
by Hoverbike Girl
Summary: Version 2 posted! Ape Escape, Ratchet & Clank, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Sonic the Hedgehog meet Animal Crossing! Can Spike, Jimmy, Ratchet, Clank, SpongeBob, Patrick, Sonic, and Tails save AC from the mysterious Big Boss and his robot army? Please R&R!
1. Intro: A Wild World at War

**_Animal Crossing Heroes to the Rescue!_**

_(Version 2)_

_Concept Fall 2004/Published Winter 2006/Revised Fall 2008_

By _Hoverbike Girl_

Once again, my dear readers, I, Hoverbike Girl, am back with this story, _Animal Crossing: Heroes to the Rescue!_ A review from a good friend of mine, **C.S. Bernard**, pointed out some mistakes I had made in this story. Being the nitpicker that I am, I couldn't ignore them and went back to fix them; one of my mottos is "If it's worth doing, it's worth doing _right_!"

Each and every chapter has been examined for errors (but don't worry, not all have been drastically changed). Feel free to completely read through it or simply skim through to find these changes. The most notable would be Ratchet & Clank's introduction (Chapter 3), which has been completely overhauled. That said, I will make author notes in the appropriate chapters to point out where I have changed things and to iron out any last questions or uncertain parts about the plot.

Okay, now that that's been said, here's the disclaimer again:

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Animal Crossing or any of its characters; they belong to Nintendo. All AC towns mentioned in this story (example: AnimaCity) are fictional. If anyone has a town with the same name as any of the towns, it is by pure coincidence. So please, don't sue me.

I hope you enjoy this final version of my story!

_--Hoverbike Girl_

* * *

Intro: A Wild World at War

Animal Crossing is a peaceful country that allows humans to live with talking animals…but you already knew that. What you probably don't know is that it is now at war.

_War_ in Animal Crossing?! That's very hard to believe for many villagers. The country never had any grudges against the humans or other neighboring lands. So why are they fighting? Well, they aren't quarreling with their neighbors; they're fighting an invader within their own borders.

His name is "Big Boss". An alias, obviously, but the animals don't know him by any other name. Few animals have ever seen him and returned to their friends to tell them about him; in fact, the only animals that have seen him face-to-face are his most trustworthy spies. He is never seen in public; whenever he has a message to send to the population, he has a robot spokesman do it for him. It is whispered among the animals that he is a human, but this cannot be proved or denied. Rumor also has it that he has settled in a dark castle from Animal Crossing's Dark Age.

No one is quite sure where Big Boss came from, but they do know how he started his tyrannical campaign. The experts say that the first Animal Crossing town to fall was Tombstone—a village that was modeled like a Western boomtown. The town had been founded because of rumors of gold in the area, but it became deserted when all the gold was gone. Nasty characters and criminals liked to use Tombstone as a hiding place, which is probably why Big Boss took over it first; he could recruit the hoodlums living in the town as spies.

Once he had a good number of spies, he started to build a factory in Tombstone. His existence was still unknown to the outside world, so he got away with the project. When the plant was finished, he began making weapons…and robots.

The robots are obedient, color-coded, armed with special group-specific weapons, and shaped in different ways. Regular infantry are red, portly figures that barely tower over a regular animal's head. The grunts are equipped with arm-mounted blasters, and officers within the small hierarchy of the army are allowed a wider range of weapons. Village police (for controlling an occupied town) are slightly taller than infantry, colored blue, and are armed with clubs, Tasers, and other weapons designed for crowd control.

There are rumors about a third group existing, called the Animal Crossing Secret Police, and if they are real, they are the most dangerous of the robot army. Reports vary, but most agree that they are tallest type of robot, painted a deep gray, and have a tube on their heads for eyes, with a moving red laser for a pupil. Their job is to root out and capture any animal that is conspiring to commit crimes against Big Boss's Empire—in other words, freedom fighters. Their searches in homes and village buildings are thorough, and their raids (usually at night) are swift, silent, and successful.

It is also rumored that they have a leader, known as The Secret Police Chief. He is described as a short, non-robot (human or animal, no one knows) with a deep, menacing voice, and he wears a black cloak that covers both his body and his face. These stories about the Secret Police and their Chief are so well described that it is hard to deny their existence, but nobody has ever captured a functioning robot or acquired scraps of one.

Once he had built up a good-sized army, Big Boss sent his horde of robots out into the towns neighboring Tombstone and forced them to swear allegiance to his empire. Within a month he had about half of Animal Crossing under control. And then a week later he encountered the first resistance.

Upon hearing of the takeover, the mayor of Animal Crossing's capital of AnimaCity—Tortimer the old tortoise—immediately called a council of war with the most prominent villagers in the city. Everyone agreed that open war was too dangerous and would have too many casualties; for the unprepared animals, the best form of fighting back would be to form an underground resistance group that would sabotage Big Boss's work. Thus, "The Animal Alliance" was born.

The Alliance quickly found many supporters and recruits, and among them were prominent citizens—Tom Nook the shopkeeper, Blathers and Celeste the Museum curators, Copper and Booker the police dogs, and even K.K. Slider the famous musician. Soon they had a good operation set up in AnimaCity, and the work spread to other towns that were still free. From gathering intelligence on Big Boss's activities to sabotaging factories, the "Allies" were always busy.

Big Boss was quick to react to the counter-attack. He set up patrols in his factories, monitored the transport of supplies harder, and sent companies of robots to seize the resisting towns. A month after the Animal Alliance was formed, AnimaCity, the Allies' HQ, was taken. Fortunately, the Allies hid their plans, and The Boss had no idea that the capital was the headquarters of the "Rebels" (as he called them). The Allies continued to fight back the invasion, but no matter how hard they tried, Big Boss and his horde stuck fast to the land. It would take a miracle to defeat them.

And they got their miracle, in the form of eight heroes…


	2. Chapter 1: The Secret Meeting

_Version 2 Author Notes:_

1) The town where most of the action takes place, AnimaCity, is larger than most AC towns (49 acres!) It has the regular buildings from the first game, but it also has the town hall from AC: Wild World. It may seem confusing at first, but the town hall maintains its importance as a gathering place for special events.

2) After doing a little research, I discovered that the Nooklings speak an equal amount of time. (In ACWW, when you first go to the second floor, Tommy talks and then Timmy repeats, but when you leave, it's reversed.) So, to give the twins some equality in my story, I now switch between them talking and repeating one another. However, you might notice that Tommy is more outspoken and Timmy tends to be a tad shy; that's my own design. Twins might not behave the _exact same_ way, you know.

3) If any of you remember the old version, I kept the Nooklings as Tom Nook's sons, even though technically they aren't. Well, I have an explanation now. Since we never hear of a Mrs. Nook, I've opted to make them his _adopted _sons. But he adopted them at such an early age that they just say "dad" and "sons". Nook will mention some of this in Chapter 6.

4) And yes, I do still have the fictional attic in Nookington's (although, how do we know that it _doesn't_ exist, hm?); the Nooks have to sleep somewhere, right?

* * *

Chapter #1: The Secret Meeting

It was a quiet summer night in the town of AnimaCity. Puffy cumulus clouds had covered up most of the deep blue sky, and a gentle breeze rustled the trees and bushes. In the denser parts of the forest, crickets chirped. Because of the strict 10:00 curfew, all of the villagers had turned their lights off and were snoozing in their cozy cottages…with the exception of three.

In a small apple orchard, three figures crouched in the darkest shadows; all of them wore black cloaks and hoods to hide their identities. They ducked further into their hiding place as a navy-blue robot trotted past them on its nightly patrol. Once it had passed, the trio darted out of the orchard and across a stone bridge. They dove into some bushes on the other side of the river and listened for any sounds. After a pause, two of the strange figures broke the silence.

"Wow, Daddy, this is fun!"

"Fun!"

The third figure turned to the younger ones and held a finger to his lips. "Shh! Timmy, Tommy, please be quiet!"

"Sorry, Daddy," the pair said quietly in unison.

The leader, apparently Tom Nook, shook his head and sighed. "If you want to go to the meeting, you need to be quieter and stealthier, all right?"

"All right," replied the Nooklings.

Leading the Nooklings with his arms, Tom crept to the AnimaCity Museum in Acre E-6 (remember, 49 acres, not 30). Once he was sure the coast was clear, he opened the wooden door that Blathers had placed into the entrance and ducked inside the marble building. Inside the main lobby, he closed the door and locked it with a key the owl had given him. Then he walked up to the museum's old grandfather clock and pressed on a brick in the wall on the clock's left side. The brick went inward and activated a special mechanism behind the clock. The grandfather clock moved to the right, revealing a secret stairway behind it. Taking his sons' hands, the shopkeeper walked down the stairs into the darkness.

The stairwell led down into the museum's hidden basement, where members of the Animal Alliance in AnimaCity met at least once a week. The basement was their storehouse as well, with weapons, gadgets, maps, and plans tucked into drawers and other furniture that had been smuggled into the Museum. So far, the village police hadn't found the hideout, and the Allies' activities had never been disturbed.

The Nooks weren't the first to arrive. The top members were sitting in a circle of red armchairs. The police dogs, Copper and Booker, were sitting at the bottom of the circle with their backs to the raccoons. Celeste the observatory curator (and also Blathers' sister) sat on Copper's left. At the head of the circle sat the Alliance's leader, none other than Tortimer the mayor. When the old tortoise saw the Nooks, he smiled and waved them over to the chairs beside him.

"Glad to see ya made it, Tom," he greeted them warmly. "An' ya brought the younguns with ya, eh?"

"Hi, Mr. Mayor!" Tommy said with an excited grin. (Remember, the other Nookling repeats what's underlined.)

Copper cocked an eyebrow at the raccoon kits and asked Tom, "Why did you bring them here, Nook?"

The shopkeeper shrugged and replied, "They insisted on coming, and I couldn't say no. I made them promise to behave themselves. Will they be any problem, friends?"

A chorus of "No, no problem at all" was the reply.

Then Tom looked around and scratched his head in puzzlement; one member was missing. "Where's Blathers? Wasn't he supposed to get his reconnaissance mission done before the meeting?"

"Yes, he was, hootie hoot," said Celeste, and she ground her beak with worry for her brother. "I hope nothing happened…"

Tortimer attempted to assure the group, smiling and saying, "Don't worry, everybody, he'll git here!" He looked down at his feet and whispered to himself, "…I hope."

Suddenly, the Allies heard the sound of the museum clock moving; someone was coming into the basement. Fearing that Big Boss had discovered them, Tortimer ordered them to prepare for a fight. Tom Nook grabbed a fire extinguisher, and Tortimer armed himself with his cane. Copper got out his police gun while his frightened partner jumped into a big red vase; Celeste, not one for fighting, ducked behind the vase. Timmy and Tommy hid in an exotic wardrobe.

Copper, Tortimer, and Nook pressed themselves against the walls by the basement's entrance, with their weapons ready. Soon an animal with a black cloak and hood much like Tom's crept down the stairs, and when he was in range, Tortimer swung at him with his cane. The creature ducked the blow and held up his hands, which actually turned out to be wings, in defense.

"Hullo there! Stop!" he shouted in something like a British accent. "It's only me!" He lifted his hood off his head, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. It was only Blathers!

"Blathers!" Tortimer exclaimed. "Ya made it!"

Upon hearing Blathers speaking, Timmy and Tommy poked their heads out of the wardrobe. "Blathers!" they cried, and they leaped out of the wardrobe. "You scared us!" said Tommy.

"I am so sorry for startling you, fellows," Blathers said as he removed his cloak. "No hard feelings, eh? Heh heh."

Celeste hugged her brother and asked him, "Do you have the information you were supposed to get?"

"Yes, I do. And it was quite hard to get, I can tell you!"

Everybody knew that Blathers could ramble on unchecked, and Copper quickly interrupted a bit rudely, "_Don't _tell us. Whatcha got?"

The owl pulled some yellow folders out from his cloak. "These are some of Big Boss's latest plans."

Tortimer's eyebrows rose. "_Really?_ Let's hear 'em!"

He opened one file and glanced at it briefly. Then he turned to Copper and said, "This one is yours, Copper. He wants his robot police to move into your station. The gatehouse is too small for them all."

The dog shrugged and said, "Saw it coming. I'll live."

"They have orders to kick you and Booker out."

Copper's eyes bulged out of their sockets. _"WHAT?!"_

Chuckling, Tortimer whispered to Nook, "Betcha he didn't see _that _comin'."

Celeste patted Copper's shoulder and said, "Don't worry, friend. You and Booker can stay here in the Museum! Blathers and I won't mind!"

Booker's head popped out of the red vase, and he asked in a stupid voice, "Can I chew on the fossils?"

Celeste's eyebrows rose in uncertainty. "Then again…"

Tortimer asked Blathers, "What were the other two?"

Returning his eyes to the folders in his wings, the owl opened a second one. After clearing his throat, he said, "Big Boss plans on building a robot factory near Daytona."

Copper groaned. "Not another one! Why does he keep building more factories anyway?!"

As he was climbing out of the vase, Booker answered his partner, "It's 'cause we keep destroying his old ones, I think…" He fell out of the vase with an "Oof!" to end his sentence.

As Copper went to help the bulldog up and the others began planning how to sabotage the newest factory, Blathers studied the third and final folder. As he read, his eyebrows rose higher and higher. An "Oh dear" escaped his lips…err…beak.

Everyone stopped talking and looked at him. "'Oh dear' what, brother?" asked Celeste, nervousness in her eyes.

"Big Boss's last scheme is the worst. He's going to take control of the Animal Crossing Train Yard."

The reaction was expected; everyone shouted, _"What?!"_

"Yer right!" cried Tortimer. "That _is _worse! That's the biggest train yard in the whole country!"

Copper paced the floor angrily, yelling out the consequences if The Boss's plan succeeded. "If he conquers it, then he'll have the railroads too! We won't be able to ship weapons to other bases or receive shipments without him knowing!" He threw his paws up in frustration. "Heck, we won't even be able to get a train!"

Tom Nook punched his fist into the other hand in determination. "We have to stop him, or we'll be under his reign forever!"

"Just one problem," Copper pointed out. "We don't have enough men! Even if we could rally all our soldiers, they wouldn't be enough to counter the robots!"

"Then we have to get some more help! Recruit the strongest and bravest animals we know of!"

The police dog shook his head. "If you're referring to the guys who are in the Animal Crossing Hall of Fame, you're outta luck. All of 'em are either captured or out of the country."

Blathers suggested, "We can always ask more of the citizens to join our cause."

Copper rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right!" he said with plenty of sarcasm. "Okay! Why don't we put up some Uncle Sam flyers around the towns that say 'We want _**you**_ for the Animal Alliance! Meetings every Saturday night in the secret museum basement at midnight!' Then all we have to do is hope that Big Boss and his goons don't see them!"

Tortimer chuckled. "Heh heh! Good one, doggy!"

Narrowing his eyes, the dog growled, "Don't call me that."

Celeste put her wings on her hips and said, "Please, boys, be serious. We need to find a way to get more people so we can take the Animal Crossing Train Yard."

The mayor threw his hands in the air, one hand holding his cane. "But who do we git?! All the humans moved out when that _madman _came and started his dictatorship!"

"_We_ have an idea!"

"Idea!"

"Huh?" Everyone turned to look at the Nooklings.

Seeing that they had their attention, Timmy exclaimed, "We can get help from heroes! You know, the guys who travel around and save the world and stuff!"

Tortimer chuckled. "Cute idea, kiddies."

Timmy's mouth dropped; they weren't taking them seriously? _"__Cute?! Kiddies?!__"_

Copper was losing his patience. "Sorry, Nooklings, but we can't just sit around and wait for some guy to pop out of your comic books and save us."

"But…" the two coons protested.

Celeste stepped forward and put her wings on Timmy's shoulders. "Thank you for your help, Timmy and Tommy, but your idea just won't work." Both of the twins hung their heads; Timmy sniffed and wiped his eyes, but neither of them said any more.

Copper sighed. "I guess we'll just hafta make do with our squads, since only the kids came up with their 'comic book idea'."

Tortimer held his cane in the air and exclaimed, "Well, outnumbered or not, we've gotta try to git that train yard before The Boss does! We'll rally our troops at the train station tomorrow morning! Meeting dismissed."

The Allies walked up the stairs out of the basement to the lobby. Blathers and Celeste opened the front door, let the others out, and locked the door behind them. Tortimer left for his office in the town hall, and the dogs went back to the police station. The raccoon family walked all the way back to their store, Nookington's.

As Tom was locking the automatic door after them, he noticed that his sons' heads were still as low as their chests. He sighed with sympathy and, placing his hands on their shoulders, he tried to cheer them up. "You boys did a good thing by giving us an idea. You've made me proud."

Their heads came up, and the twins smiled, glad that their father was proud of them.

Nook got an idea, and he whispered to them with a glimmer in his eye, "Who knows? Maybe I'll ask Tortimer to make you two official members."

The Nooklings' eyes widened. "Would you, Daddy?" Tommy exclaimed, clasping his paws in excitement.

"Only if you two behave while I'm gone tomorrow."

"Yay!" they cried in unison.

"Now go upstairs and get ready for bed. I'll be up to tuck you in after I lock up."

The twins raced up to the attic, which was where the raccoons lived. After they brushed their teeth and changed into their matching red-and-white striped pajamas, Tom tucked them into their identical blue beds. Then, yawning, he left their room and went into his own.

But as soon as Timmy heard his father's snoring in the next room, he kicked off his blankets and hopped out of bed. Then he tiptoed up to the room's window and stared at the night sky, which was clearing up.

His brother was watching him, and he wondered what he was up to. He spoke without copying, which the twins rarely did. "Whatcha doin' up?" he asked.

Timmy simply replied, "I can't sleep, so I'm watching the stars."

Tommy joined his sibling, and they gazed at the twinkling stars. After a long pause, he whispered, "Are you scared of the robots?"

"…Yeah."

"Me too. I hope Dad kicks their butts tomorrow."

"Uh huh. But…but they need help, don't they?" Timmy's lip quivered with fear. "Those robots might hurt 'em real bad."

"Yeah, but who can help them?"

"…I dunno…people like the ones in our comic books…heroes. There are real ones out there…but…are they gonna come?"

"I hope they do, bro."

They fell silent for another minute, and admired the heavenly bodies in the blue sky. After a while, Timmy spotted what he had been looking for, and he broke the silence. "Look! A shooting star!" he whispered and pointed in excitement.

Tommy also saw it and caught on to his joy. "We get to make a wish!"

"I've got one! I'll say it, and you echo."

"Okay!"

While staring at the stars, Timmy said the rhyme he had learned about making wishes on stars.

_Star __light__,_ _star __bright__…_

_First star we see __tonight__…_

_Wish we __may__, wish we __might__…_

_Have the wish we wish __tonight__._

Then, with the light of their wishing star shining in his eyes, Timmy whispered, _"We wish…for heroes."_

His sibling was silent for a second, and then he too said the wish. _"…heroes."_


	3. Chapter 2: Assault on the Train Yard

_Version 2 Author Notes (Part 1):_

This revision was just a minor one, really. The biggest change was that I removed Tortimer from the heat of the fight. I mean, really: an old tortoise fighting in battle? It didn't make much sense when I read it over.

...Or maybe he trained himself in cane-fighting (there's such a thing, believe it or not). Can you imagine it? XD

* * *

Chapter #2: Assault on the Train Yard

The next day, an undersized but determined army of 100 Allies was gathered in a forest on the outskirts of the Animal Crossing Train Yard, which, unfortunately, had been captured by Big Boss already. Copper stood lookout on a giant boulder in front of the attack group, with a pair of binoculars in his hands (err…_paws?_) He looked through them and scouted the area. They were in luck; Big Boss hadn't placed any guards around the train yard's perimeter. But, according to their scouts, there were hordes of robots watching for intruders from inside the buildings. The 'bots would attack if the alarm system went off. He put away his binoculars and turned back to his comrades. In the center were Tortimer, Tom Nook, Booker, and K.K. Slider, who was also an Ally.

"How does it look, Copper?" asked Tortimer. "Should we attempt to take the train yard from Big Boss?"

Copper replied, "There aren't any guards outside. We could sneak into the compound if we surround it and come in from all sides."

Tom Nook held a map of the train yard in his hands, and he was studying it intently. "We'll need to be stealthy though," he warned his comrades. He set the map down on a rock that served as a table, pointed at their current location, and moved a finger over the areas covered with forest. "There's woods all around the back of the main compound. We can sneak into the control building by using these places as cover. The rear of the place has the most trees and the least amount of surveillance; we should try to sneak most of our forces through that area and find the emergency exit at the back."

Copper nodded his approval of the coon's strategy. "You're right, Nook. If we conquer the control compound, then we have the whole train yard in our hands!"

Suddenly they heard footsteps pounding toward them. A very exhausted Blathers ran into the throng with a piece of paper in his hand. "I think we need to call off the assault," he panted. " I just received a message from my sister. A robot spokesperson announced just this morning that Big Boss is holding the train yard staff hostage, and he's not afraid to kill them if we attack."

"_What?!" _Tortimer cried. "How did he know we were comin'?!"

"He doesn't!" the owl replied. "He thought we would retaliate if he took over the yard, so he's using hostages as a shield to keep us away."

The mayor closed his eyes, rubbed his forehead, and sat down on a rock to think. All eyes were on him as he hummed, mumbled, and groaned to himself. Then, a minute later, he stood up and looked around at them with a grim expression.

"Well, boys, it looks like our priorities have changed. We need to rescue those hostages before attempting to take over the train yard. We'll use the same plan, but we just need to be sneakier. I'll let you take care of those hostages, Tom. You take yer teams with ya. Copper, take yer men and head on over to the main buildin' to clear the way for Tom. Blathers, you'll serve as the backup team; wait here for a call to your group and help whoever calls first. I'll take my boys, and we'll make our way to the train shed to get a hold of some trains that can get the hostages outta here. Slider, I want you to cover my squad's behind."

The white dog suddenly interrupted, "Freeze for a sec, Mr. Mayor. I don't think you should be fighting. No offense, but you're old. And you're our boss; we can't afford to lose ya."

Tortimer was surprised by this, but when he checked the faces of Tom, Copper, and Blathers, he realized that they agreed; there was no point in arguing. "…Fine. Slider will get my group and do the job by himself. I'll take a small group from the backup and wait for ya at the exit point. Now let's move out!"

With salutes, the Allies split up into their appropriate teams and set off on their missions.

Copper led his troops through the forest toward the train yard's main building, which was probably where the hostages were being held. If they rescued the animals and also got hold of the train controls, they would kill two birds with one stone!

But reaching the main compound wasn't going to be as easy as Copper had hoped. When they ran for the supposedly unguarded back door, they were greeted with a hail of gunfire. They had been spotted! Quickly he shouted, "Retreat!" And he didn't need to say it again; his troops were off like bullets, ducking for cover in the woods. Unfortunately, red infantry robots burst out of the building and followed them. In minutes, many animals were injured, and Copper was lost in the tangle of woods. He had lost his walkie-talkie in the fight, so he couldn't call for reinforcements.

_Perfect…juust perfect, _thought the dog with a grimace.

Suddenly, there was a brilliant flash of light, and Copper was blinded. He crawled behind a tree and stared at what had made the light. The light itself was actually some kind of a portal. He almost fainted when two male humans stepped out of the portal.

The taller, older boy of the duo had a red, spiked hairdo with some yellow hair on the front, like the people you see in Japanese TV shows. He wore a red shirt with a white stripe running down one side. The other boy looked almost the same, except his hairdo was slightly different and his shirt, which looked more like a vest, had a star instead of a stripe. Both of them held what looked like blue lightsabers in their hands and had backpacks on their backs.

When the first boy got a good look at their surroundings, he became confused. "Uh oh. This doesn't look like the beach," he said. By the sound of his voice, he was in his early to mid-teens.

The younger boy blinked and looked around as well. "You're right. Where are we?"

As the two scratched their heads in puzzlement, Copper mumbled to himself, "These guys look lost. Should I help them?" He quickly made up his mind and stepped out from behind the tree. Caught by surprise, the boys held up their lightsaber-things in warning. The dog held his paws in the air and cried, "Hey! Hold it!"

The boy in the vest was startled. "A talking dog in a police officer's suit?!"

"Uh, yeah. The name's Copper."

"Nice to meet you, I guess," said the older human. "Where in the world are we?"

"You're in Animal Crossing, the country where humans can live with talking animals," Copper replied honestly.

The young boy said, "Animal Crossing? Never heard of it."

The teen rubbed the back of his neck in frustration. "Natalie must've gotten the coordinates wrong…again."

His friend pointed out, "Hey, it's not as bad as the last time! She warped us to the North Pole! And we didn't have any snow gear!"

He rubbed his forehead as if the memory gave him a headache. "Please don't remind me," he groaned.

Copper didn't know who Natalie was or what coordinates she had supposedly mixed up, but he didn't dwell on these things. Instead he asked, "Now that you know who I am, can you tell me who _you_ are?"

Just then there was a loud explosion, and the three held their ears. Copper realized that Tom had entered the main building without him, and he had used explosives to bust open the back door. The blast brought the assault back into his mind, and he said, "Umm…maybe we'd better talk somewhere else."

The teen covered his ears as another explosive was set off. "You're right. Sounds like a war is goin' on out here!"

"Actually, it _is_ a war. You see, we're just outside Animal Crossing's main train yard, and my comrades and I are trying to get inside it. An evil dictator has control of it, and he has hostages inside the main building."

The second boy whistled in amazement. "Wow." Then an idea formed in his mind. "Hey, do ya think _we_ can help?!"

Copper rubbed the scruff of his neck with worry. Two boys fighting in this war? What would Tortimer say if they got hurt? But they could really use some help… "I dunno…maybe, if you're really good with those swords…"

The kid looked at his weapon. "Our Stun Clubs? Yeah! We're good with them!"

His partner was hesitant like Copper. "I don't know if we should get in—"

_Boom! Crash!_

In their conversation, Copper had forgotten about the robots. One, armed with a bazooka, had fired upon them. Luckily, its shot went wide, and instead blew a tree yards by them in half. The trio ducked out of the way and began to run away. This close call instantly made up the boy's mind, and he said quickly, "OK, you've got a deal. Show us the way!" He grabbed his partner's hand and dashed off with Copper.

The two boys and the dog dodged robots and ducked behind fallen trees on their way to the main building's back door. Copper fired at the 'bots with his pistols, and the boys used their "Stun Clubs" to destroy any soldier that got in their way. Along the way the police dog rallied his troops, who, encouraged by the appearance of the two strangers, dove back into battle.

When the group finally reached the door, they found it blown off its hinges. They raced inside and found many members of Tom Nook's group lying on the floor, most of them injured. Most of Copper's troops stayed behind to care for them and hold off any attackers, and the trio raced on. Finally they made it to the control room, where they found Tom and his remaining soldiers with the hostages, all of which were monkeys (surprise, surprise) and had been tied on the floor with rope.

When the raccoon saw Copper, he finished cutting one monkey's bonds with a small knife, stood up, and greeted him. "Glad to see you in one piece, Copper. What happened back there?"

Copper replied, "My team got a warm welcome from those bucket brains, and then I met these two boys." He gestured to his helpers, and they nodded in a small greeting. "It seems they accidentally got warped here. They helped me reach you."

The shopkeeper immediately went up and shook the older boy's hand. "Glad to meet you! I'm Tom Nook! Thank you for helping Copper."

"It was nothing, really," the teen said. Remembering his manners, he introduced himself and his friend. "I'm Spike, and this is my cousin Jimmy. Since we're here, we might as well help you until we can get back home. Copper told us you were trying to take over this place."

"Yes, and our plan seems to have been changed; there are too few of us and too many robots, so we need to just escape. I just received a call from my friend K.K. Slider, and he told me that he and his team have acquired some trains that can take the hostages and our injured back to our HQ, AnimaCity. All we have to do is set the train tracks for our course, round up everyone, and get out of here!"

They heard more gunfire, and some hostages cringed in fear. The Allies cocked their guns, and Spike and Jimmy pulled out their Stun Clubs. The control room's door broke down, and a swarm of robots entered, guns blazing.

As the fight started to turn for the worse, Copper shouted to Tom over the din, "Take the hostages and get outta here! I'll take care of the train tracks!"

The raccoon nodded, gave Copper his radio, and led the hostages through another doorway. While Spike, Jimmy, and the others were fending off the troops, Copper typed on the control room's main computer and threw a few switches. The screen showed sets of train tracks moving into position. The police dog then turned on his radio and contacted Tortimer. "Tortimer, the track is ready, over."

The mayor's voice came through from the other end. "Then open the trains' gates, ya ninny! Those trains ain't goin' nowhere unless you unlock those gates!"

"Oops, sorry. Lemme fix that." The dog flipped some more switches. "Okay, all gates are open; they're free to go. Tell Slider to wait for Nook and the rest of us at the platform. Tom's bringing the hostages, and I'll gather up our wounded men. Copper out."

When the dog turned around, his eyes widened. All of his troops had been injured, and they were limping and crawling through the door Tom had used. But Spike and Jimmy were unhurt, and they were energetically swinging their Stun Clubs like they were Jedi Knights out of _Star Wars_! In minutes, the robots had been turned into piles of scrap metal. Not one survived.

Spike wiped the sweat off his forehead and breathed a sigh of relief. "Whew! What a tussle! I thought they wouldn't stop coming!"

"That was kinda fun!" Jimmy said as he sheathed his Stun Club.

Copper whistled. "You guys are better than I thought. Anyway, let's get outta here."

The boys agreed completely, and they raced through the door everybody else had gone through.

* * *

_Version 2 Author Notes (Disclaimer):_

So, my first duo is Spike and Jimmy from the crazy game series _Ape Escape_! I don't own them. Sony technically owns them, and lately Ubisoft has been developing the games. Oh yeah, and I don't own either Jedi Knights or _Star Wars_; I was just using them for a simile. (cowers in corner) Don't hurt me, George Lucas! XD


	4. Chapter 3: The Galactic Adventurers

_Version 2 Author's Notes (Part 1):_

As I stated in the intro, this particular chapter got a big revision. The rest of my notes and the disclaimer will be at the end.

* * *

Chapter #3: The Galactic Adventurers

While Copper, Spike, and Jimmy were racing for the train platform, Blathers and his team were waiting in the original meeting spot, waiting for any calls of assistance. The old owl paced nervously in front of his troops, and he occasionally stopped to tap his foot impatiently on the grass. He grunted and muttered to himself.

"Humph. They must have completed the mission by now. Why haven't we been called to join them? Has something terrible happened to them? Oh, dear, I hope not…"

One of his troops, Butch the Rottweiler (at least, I think that's what he is…), lost his patience with his captain. He stood up and stomped over to the owl. "Blathers, will you cut it out?! You're makin' us nervous! We're already worried as it is!"

The owl halted. "Oh. Do pardon me. I just hate sitting around like this."

Just then one of K.K.'s troops, a chocolate Labrador (not a villager from the games), rushed up to meet them. He saluted to Blathers and said, "Blathers, I bring word from K.K. Slider. We've succeeded in acquiring a fleet of trains to accommodate our needs, and we're ready to start up their engines."

The curator clapped his wings with joy. "This is too good to be true!" he exclaimed.

The dog sighed. "You're right about that. The bad news is that too many of our men have been wounded. Our original mission is a failure. Now our only hope for survival is to load all our men onto the trains and retreat as soon as possible. Tortimer requests that you send your team to recover our wounded."

"Well, all right." Blathers turned to his troops. "You heard him! Rescue all our troops! Leave none behind!" The owl was going to make a speech, but a loud roar overhead drowned out his voice. Everyone looked up at the sky and saw something red whiz over the forest. The Allies began to panic.

"It's a bird!" cried one trooper.

"It's a plane!" shouted a second.

And Booker yelled, "It's a blimp! I think…"

Luckily for the soldiers (especially for poor Blathers), a certain orange bear named Pudge knew what it was. It reminded him of the Arwing model he had in his house back home. "It's none of those!" he piped up. "It's a _spaceship!"_

Booker turned to gape at him with fearful eyes. "A spaceship? You mean…_aliens?!"_

"You must be joking!" Blathers exclaimed.

Pudge shook his head. "I'm not, pudgy. From the looks of it, I think it's going to crash close by here!"

Blathers stared in the direction the spaceship had gone. He agreed with Pudge that the flaming red object seemed to be on a crash course. He didn't believe in aliens, and he certainly would _never_ like to meet one, but curiosity overcame him. He then said, "Well, then, if it _is_ aliens, we must greet them properly. Come along, men. Men?"

When there was no response, he turned around. To his dismay, the camp had been abandoned in a matter of seconds. The Labrador had run off to return to his team, and Blathers' men had grabbed their equipment and crept away in search of their comrades. None of them wanted to investigate the crash. Blathers was alone.

"Of all the cowardly…oh, never mind. I guess I shall go alone then. Well, here I go."

The owl marched away toward the beach, which was close to the train yard. If the ship crashed just before it reached water, he could get a good look at it. But if it missed the beach, it would sink and be lost forever.

"I hope I'm not too late," he muttered.

It seemed to take hours for him to run through the forest to the shoreline. Just as he saw the sand dunes, he collided with a chain-link fence. "Oh, my beak!" he cried. "Stupid me. I should have remembered that was there. No problem for me." He flew over the fence with ease. "Now, where is…"

It was then that he saw it.

The spaceship had not sunk into the ocean after all. It had been wedged between two coconut palms next to a small cove. Because of the impact, one of the wings appeared to be severely damaged, and there were scorch and scratch marks all over the hull.

But despite the scrapes, the ship itself was a marvel. It appeared to be a starfighter, its body a deep shade of red. The nose of it was lined with laser guns and missiles. Even the wings were armed. Thrusters at the back powered the ship. The entire ship was well designed, with mobility, speed, and plenty of firepower in mind.

"Most definitely a starfighter," muttered Blathers as he jogged up to it and studied every angle of the craft. "I've never seen anything like it before! Not even in those silly space flicks I see on the weekends! Aerodynamic design, landing gear, hover capability…this craft is the perfect fighter!"

Blathers was so excited by his discovery that, at first, he failed to notice a few details. Something was going on under the belly of the ship; there was a blue light emanating from it, and sparks were flying. And in the cockpit, there were other lights and small computer noises.

_He had company._

"Thank you, kind sir."

The old owl almost jumped out of his feathers at the voice, and turned to the cockpit. And when he saw the owner of the voice, he really did jump out of his feathers!

A small robot, perhaps two feet tall (not including an antenna with a blinking red light on his head), was leaning slightly out of the cockpit and watching him with bright, friendly green eyes. The design of the joints of his face and the shutters over his eyes allowed him to make subtle facial expressions. At the moment, he appeared curious.

"Greetings," he offered with a wave of a three-fingered hand.

Stammering nervously, the owl shakily waved back with a wing.

"I am Clank. And your name is…?"

"…B-b-blathers."

The robot thought about this for a moment, and then asked, "My comrade and I crash-landed here. Could you please provide me with our location?"

"…Y-you're in Animal Crossing, near its biggest train yard."

"Clank" hummed in thought and turned back to the cockpit computers. "If only I had downloaded more detailed maps of the Milky Way Galaxy…" he mumbled.

Suddenly the blue light and sparks under the ship stopped, and a new voice said, "That should do it. But that wing…hey, Clank, run that damage diagnostic yet?"

"Wh-who is that?!" exclaimed Blathers, backing away from the ship.

Clank turned to him and replied, "No need to be afraid, sir. That is my friend. Ratchet, we have a visitor."

A figure crawled out from under the starfighter, and Blathers took more steps back in surprise.

The second person was most definitely an alien. But he wasn't green and bug-eyed; he was a _furry_ alien. In fact, he (in a way) resembled an anthropomorphic cat. Yellow-orange fur with dark-orange, triangular stripes (think Garfield the fat cat's stripes) covered his entire body, including his unusually large ears, which were laid back (the standard position) rather than up. His outfit consisted of something like a pilot's cap on his head; an orange shirt that looked almost like armor; a brown belt with a green buckle; dark blue pants; and brown boots. He also wore brown gloves over his hands, and in one of them he held a strange-looking tool; it appeared to be a large wrench_._ He had light-green eyes and a tail with a tuft of fur at the end.

The furry alien seemed just as surprised to see Blathers as vice versa. His eyebrows rose, and he said, "Who are _you_?"

Blathers cleared his throat nervously and replied, "Pardon me. I am Blathers the owl. May I ask who, or _what_, are _you?"_

"I'm Ratchet," was the reply. Then he gestured to the cockpit. "And that's Clank."

"We were already introduced," Clank pointed out. "By the way, how are the repairs?"

"Ratchet" showed the other item he had; it appeared to be a futuristic blowtorch. "I welded that plate back in place okay, but I should probably get it replaced. The wing is another story, though. How about that diagnostic, Clank?"

The robot sighed and shook his head. "It detected an extensive amount of damage. The engine suffered much, so I am afraid that we are unable to fly until it is repaired."

The alien let out a groan. "Wonderful. What about our position?"

"Blathers has informed me that we are located in 'Animal Crossing', near their largest train yard."

"Any tool sheds?"

"I'm afraid not," the owl cut in. "The train yard is under the control of a dictator. You wouldn't be able to access any of the tool sheds. And besides that, we probably don't have the right technology to repair your ship." He gestured to the starfighter. "This is beyond anything we have ever built before."

The last half of his comment seemed to go right over the pair's heads. At the word "dictator", their eyebrows rose.

"A dictator, you say?" said Clank.

Puzzled by their interest, Blathers continued, "Erm…yes. We only know him as Big Boss. His robot army has invaded half of our country. I'm a part of the resistance group fighting back."

Ratchet sighed and rubbed his forehead. "So we crash-landed in the middle of a war-zone. This day just keeps getting better and better."

"Ratchet," Clank interjected, "perhaps if we assist this resistance in their conflict, we will gain access to the repair facilities here."

The alien shut his eyes halfway. "Somehow, I knew you were going to say that."

He went up to the cockpit, reached in, and took out a heavy-looking black duffel bag. He unzipped it and began rummaging around in it, muttering to himself.

"If I had known we'd be going into a war, I would've brought better armor and more ammo. Clank, what do we have in the ammo stores?"

The robot pressed a few buttons on the small computer on the dashboard of the ship; it had an inventory of the ammo stored in its small cargo hold. "We have a good store of Fusion Grenades and Agents of Doom. There is sufficient ammunition for the N90 Hurricane, Flux Rifle, Annihilator, R.Y.N.O., and…Dual Vipers? How did those get in there?" He tossed a suspicious glance at his partner.

A manic gleam leaped into Ratchet's eyes. "Those, eh? They might come in handy."

Clank's eyes narrowed. "Technically, they are contraband."

"Not in this galaxy."

"…I will grant you that." He folded his arms resignedly. "But please be careful with them."

The alien said nothing and began removing the contents of the duffel bag. He took a double holster with slots for ammo clips and strapped it around his waist. Then he took out the Dual Vipers—a pair of large, rapid-fire plasma pistols—and set them in the holsters. Last was the N90 Hurricane, which was the futuristic equivalent of an assault rifle. He simply set this down beside him and rather unexpectedly put the bag into Blathers' wings. The owl went down under the surprising weight.

"Yeah, the rest are on the heavy side," Ratchet said, "but I can't carry them. Clank, you coming?"

"Just a minute," was the reply. "I must store an adequate quantity of ammunition for you and cloak the ship."

Clank disappeared into a compartment of the ship, and a minute later, returned while stuffing cartridges of ammo into the slot in his middle. Surprisingly, they all fit; he explained that he had a matter-compression device (made that term up, sorry) in his core that allowed him to carry around many different items. Blathers hardly understood any of this, but watched with interest as the starfighter became cloaked and the robot attached himself to Ratchet's back in a backpack fashion.

After putting his wrench in his belt and picking up the N90 Hurricane in the other hand, Ratchet grinned at Blathers and said, "Lead the way."

With a nod, the owl began the walk back to the fence he had flown over. But since he was now lugging Ratchet's bag, it was slower going. This allowed him, between breaths, to ask a couple questions. He was fearful of all the advanced and dangerous weapons these two characters seemed to have an abundance of, but they seemed friendly enough.

"So, erm, where exactly are you from?"

Ratchet glanced at him and shrugged. "Nowhere special. Just the planet Veldin…you know, in the Solana Galaxy."

Blathers only blinked in confusion. "Err…the…where?"

"Ratchet, I do not think the inhabitants of this planet know very much about the rest of space," Clank remarked.

His friend checked their guide again, and noted his puzzlement. "…Right. Sorry."

There was a pause, and then Blathers worked up the guts to ask another question that was bothering him.

"If you don't mind my asking, what, err…species are you?"

"I'm a Lombax," was the reply.

He tried to get his beak and tongue around the foreign word, but failed. "…L…Low…base?"

"_Lombax,"_ Ratchet repeated with a chuckle.

"They are a rare and gifted race," Clank said. "The majority of them had an affinity for mechanics and technology."

The curator's gaze fell on the wrench tucked in Ratchet's belt; that made perfect sense to him. "And, ah…how did you, erm…acquire all of these weapons?" he stammered.

"Eh, Clank and I travel a lot," he replied with another shrug. "We tend to get stuck in battles. So I pick up a lot of weapons."

"He was also trained as a commando and currently serves as a captain for a starship," his robot friend added again. The "Lombax", being modest, turned a little red.

"…Fascinating…" Blathers mumbled.

Ironically, he was so intrigued by this conversation that he slammed into the fence again. With permission from his alien companions, he flew over the fence and then waited to see how they would get past it.

For a moment, Ratchet studied the height of the fence and rubbed his chin. "What do you think, Clank? Heli Pack or Thruster Pack?"

"I do not have much fuel at this time for the latter," replied the robot.

"Heli Pack it is, then."

Suddenly Clank folded his head, arms, and legs even more into himself, and Ratchet crouched. When he leaped into the air, Clank came back out, but this time he had a rotor on his head, and his limbs were replaced with similar ones. They whirled fast enough to lift both of them into the air, over the fence, and safely onto the ground. When it was over, Clank transformed back to normal.

"Extraordinary," said Blathers. "Does he have other functions?"

This query was aimed at Ratchet, but he was looking over the owl's shoulder at something beyond. He suddenly yelled _"Get down!"_ and shoved him to the ground. Blaster fire whizzed over where their heads had been seconds before.

Having done training in the resistance, Blathers didn't panic like a normal person would have done. He rolled to the safety of the tree nearest him, as did Ratchet. Unfortunately, he was unarmed, and the tree wasn't holding up well against the concentrated fire of the robots that had found them. He leaped into some bushes, only to come face to face with K.K. Slider!

"Whoa, dude! I was just looking for you!" yelped the dog.

"And these robots found you, I take it," said Blathers.

Unfortunately, the robots saw their hiding place, and they moved toward it. Blathers gulped, and K.K. mumbled, "This is a problem."

Suddenly someone whistled. The robots turned their heads to see Ratchet standing out in the open, holding his N90 Hurricane out in front of him. A big grin split his face, and he opened fire.

The resulting barrage of rapid blaster fire decimated the squad in seconds. Blathers and K.K. had enough sense to duck, and watched in amazement as their attackers were turned into scrap metal.

After the deafening sounds of the futuristic assault rifle and shattering metal, there was silence. Then Ratchet's voice called, "All clear!" The two animals crawled out of the bushes and found their rescuer leaning against the tree (lightly, because of Clank), smiling with satisfaction. When he saw them, he blew the smoke emitting from the barrel of his rifle. Clank shook his head and muttered, "I am beginning to think you are becoming 'trigger-happy', Ratchet."

The Lombax only chuckled. "So," he said to Blathers, "those bolt buckets are the army? I don't think we have anything to worry about."

"They can be fast learners," the owl said with a sigh.

"Uhh…am I missin' somethin' here, Blathers? Who are these dudes?"

All three of them turned to K.K., who seemed to be a shade whiter in the face than normal. Blathers explained, "These are Ratchet and Clank, K.K. They crash-landed on the beach. Ratchet and Clank, this is K.K. Slider, an agent in the Animal Alliance."

"Greetings," said Clank. Ratchet gave a small nod and a grin.

K.K. regained his composure and "cool talk" as he and the Lombax shook hands. "Nice to meet ya, Ratchet. That was some fireworks show you put on for us. Pretty cool."

Ratchet grinned some more. "Thanks. Anyway, it looks like you guys have a dictator problem."

A grim chuckle was his answer. "You don't know the half of it."

"Do you require assistance?" Clank offered. "I am sure we could be of great help."

The white dog cast a glance at Blathers, who vigorously nodded his head and said, "Big Boss's robots are no match for their weapons. You've seen it yourself." Then he turned to the galactic duo. "I ask for your help on behalf of all the citizens of Animal Crossing."

The Lombax rubbed his chin in thought, and then looked over his shoulder at his partner. "What do you think, Clank?"

"You know my answer already," the robot said with a slight smile. "They require aid, and we can provide it. So, therefore, we should."

Likewise, when Ratchet looked back to the hopeful animals, he wore an adventurous smile. "It's not the first time I've traveled to another galaxy to help its people. Let's go!"

The canine musician grinned. "Alright then! Follow me, dudes! We've got to get back to the rendezvous point."

K.K., Blathers, Ratchet, and Clank raced away into the forest back to the train yard.

* * *

_Version 2 Author's Notes (Disclaimer and Part 2):_

**Disclaimer:** Now the Allies have found...erm, well..._allies_, in a strange pair from the distant Solana Galaxy, Ratchet and Clank! They star in their game series called...well, _Ratchet & Clank_, of course! I don't own them; they are owned by Insomniac Games.

Now, on to a few notes.

1) You may have noticed that I changed the description of Ratchet around to something different. R&C fans call the old description "Old School Ratchet" (it was his look in the very first game); the new one is his default costume from his latest game, _Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction_.

2) In a little pickiness, I retained the weapons from the original version of the story. None of them are from "Future". All but the Dual Vipers are from _Ratchet & Clank 3: Up Your Arsenal_. The Vipers are from the game after that, _Ratchet: Deadlocked_; I stuck them in the story just 'cause they're awesome weapons. XD

3) If my descriptions aren't good enough for you, try going on Wikipedia. I found a really nice picture of Ratchet in his Future costume. (Unfortunately, I had no such luck with Spike and Jimmy...or maybe I didn't look hard enough, I dunno. If you want to look for them, be my guest.) I don't think they have pictures of the weapons, though. Luckily, the N90 Hurricane is on the cover of R&C3, and the Dual Vipers in Deadlocked.

4) Oh yeah, and from here on out, I'll try to give Clank more complex words to say, since he's a robot. (Thank you, Microsoft Word Thesaurus! XD)

As for who's coming up next...well, answer this question, and you'll understand why this is a humor fanfic: _who lives in a pineapple under the sea?_


	5. Chapter 4: Of Sponges and Starfish

Chapter #4: Of Sponges and Starfish

Meanwhile, in another area of the forest, Booker was hiding in some bushes. Robot guards had just attacked his group, and the squad had scattered. The 'bots had left, and there was silence. Now the bulldog was alone, and it terrified him; normally he didn't go anywhere without Copper. Whimpering, he called out, "Where is everybody?"

Silence.

"Butch? Jeremiah?"

More silence.

Booker scrambled out of his hiding place and began running. He didn't care where he was going, just as long as there were friends in that direction. He crashed through the woods until he found himself on the beach. He looked in every direction, but no one was there. The poor dog sat down on a log and began to cry.

"Hey! Are you okay?"

"_Yipes!"_ Booker screamed and jumped a foot in the air, startled by the voice. He whirled around and rubbed his eyes at what he saw.

In front of Booker were two sea creatures—a yellow sponge and a pink starfish. The sponge wore brown pants, a white shirt, and a red tie, and he had two upper teeth sticking out. The starfish wore green pants with purple flowers on it. He had a dazed look on his face, and a single tooth stuck out, making him look goofy.

Suddenly the sponge called out to him in a high-pitched voice (the same voice that had spoken to him before), "Hi! I'm SpongeBob SquarePants! And my buddy is Patrick Star!"

The starfish greeted him in a dumb voice, "Hi. I like ice cream."

Booker replied nervously, "Um, hi, I guess…"

"What's your name?" asked "SpongeBob".

"Uh…Booker. Have you seen any of my friends?"

"Yeah, but they're all going the other way." SpongeBob pointed in the direction Booker had come from.

The dog got up and started running back. Suddenly, a robot charged out of the trees, and Booker yelped in surprise. "A robot! _**Heeeeelp!!"**_ he screamed.

"What's so scary about a robot?" "Patrick" said.

The robot pulled out his blaster and aimed it at the trio. "Blaster armed. Prepare for annihilation," it droned.

Booker gulped and replied, "That."

SpongeBob's wide eyes grew even wider. "Uh oh. _Run for your lives!"_

However, Patrick just laughed and yelled, "It's a giraffe!"

SpongeBob and Booker didn't hesitate; they dashed away, with SpongeBob dragging Patrick along by his hand. The trio raced for the woods with the guard in hot pursuit. Booker had a pistol, but he was too frightened to use it. Plus, he wasn't a good shot, and he would probably hurt someone. SpongeBob screamed the whole way, and Patrick laughed like he was on a fun ride. Just when they thought they had escaped, they came to a canyon—a _box_ canyon.

SpongeBob cried, "Oh no! It's a dead end!"

Patrick asked, "Does that mean we're gonna die?"

"_**Yes!!" **_wailed poor Booker.

Pulling another goofy grin, the starfish shouted, "Yay! Me first!"

The robot said in its unemotional voice, "Silence. Prepare to be terminated."

SpongeBob scratched his head. "What does 'terminated' mean?"

"Killed, I think…" replied Booker.

"Oh. _**Somebody help us!!"**_

"Silence. Prepare to be terminated," the robot said again.

The trio whimpered as the guard closed in on them and aimed his blaster. Suddenly they heard two voices coming from a different direction.

"Oh my! I believe that's Booker!"

"Booker! Hang on, dude!"

Booker yelled out, "Blathers! K.K.!" Then he scratched his head. "I think…" The robot aimed the blaster at him. _**"Help me!"**_ he screamed.

There were two other voices as well, ones he didn't recognize.

"Oh dear. We should help them, Ratchet."

"Already on it, Clank."

Suddenly there was a loud series of gunshots, and Booker covered his face. When he removed his paws, the robot was a pile of metal; only its head wasn't obliterated. The dog's eyes widened in astonishment. He looked up and saw a furry alien creature jump down from the top of the canyon. The strange robot-like backpack on him activated special rotors on it, and the alien hovered to the ground. Then the backpack changed into a tiny robot. "Hello there. I am Clank," it said.

For some unknown reason, Patrick screeched, _"Smaller robot! Aaaaahh!!"_ He turned around to run and crashed into the canyon wall. He fell to the floor, and SpongeBob slapped his forehead.

"Sorry about that," apologized the sponge. "Thanks for saving us!"

"You're welcome, I guess. It was no problem," Ratchet said with a shrug. But when he looked at the temporarily-unconscious Patrick, he cocked an eyebrow.

K.K. and Blathers raced up to the group, and the owl asked, "Is everybody OK?"

Everyone responded with "Yeah, we're all right."

"Silence. Prepare to be terminated."

The group looked down and saw the robot's head. "Is that thing _still_ working?!" exclaimed Slider.

He was confirmed when it spoke again. "Silence. Prepare to be terminated."

"Is that all it can say?" Blathers said.

"Silence. Prepare to be terminated."

Ratchet volunteered, "I'll fix it with my Omniwrench." He yanked his wrench out of his belt and hit the robot's head with it. Its red eyes stopped glowing, and its monotone winded down to nothing. Then the Lombax kicked it away. "Good riddance."

K.K. shrugged and said, "Anyway, we need to get back to the trains; we've delayed too much already. The others won't wait forever." He turned to SpongeBob and Patrick. "You two hafta come with us."

"But K.K., they are aquatic life-forms," Clank pointed out from Ratchet's back. "If they remain in dry air for too long without water, they might suffer harm."

At this, SpongeBob's eyes widened. "Oops, forgot about that." But then he brightened. "But wait! Pat and I've been practicing! We can stay out for a few hours! Then we need some water."

The white dog nodded. "Good. There are hundreds of 'bots patrollin' around; it's not safe for anybody. Now let's go!"

They all raced out of the canyon and through the woods until they reached a brick platform. Beside it was a train, and Tom Nook, Spike, and Jimmy stood near the passenger car; all the hostages and agents, including Tortimer's group, were already inside. The shopkeeper waved them over, and the two boys just silently followed the group as they ran inside the car, staring at the four newcomers. They all found seats just as the train began moving. Tom, Tortimer, and Copper sat together to discuss their situation.

"I'm glad you all made it," said Tortimer. "But what's with these strange characters? Where'd they all come from? I hope all of 'em will be helpful."

"Ratchet certainly is," K.K. pointed out. "He's got an entire arsenal in that black bag of his."

"Spike and Jimmy are good with their Stun Clubs," Copper interjected.

"And SpongeBob and Patrick…" Blathers began. But then he stopped. "Well…" He gestured to Booker and Patrick, who were having a strange conversation together.

"I like ice cream," said Patrick.

Booker scratched his head. "I do too, I think…"

"I think…" the starfish mimicked perfectly.

"Don't copy me, please."

"Don't copy me, please."

"Hmm…"

"Hmm…"

Booker got an idea. He said to Patrick, "I'm an idiot!"

But what came back was "You're an idiot!"

"_Aaaarrgghh!!"_

The curator finished, "I think they're going be a problem."

Suddenly K.K., who was sitting at the back of the car, butted in. "Speaking of problems, I think we have one. Look out your window!"

Everyone looked out their windows and saw what the musician was talking about. An army of robots was chasing them on a black train and half a dozen army trucks!

The Alliance leaders and six strangers all let out various exclamations of surprise and fear. Blathers rushed out of his seat to alert the engineer, and the hostages cowered in their seats.

When he saw the foe, Ratchet reached into his black bag and brought out a light blue weapon that resembled a bazooka. "Not a problem! Come on, Clank! We can take 'em out with my Annihilator!" Then he ran to the end of the caboose (the last car on a train), aimed, and fired several shots at the oncoming train, but it had little effect. "This is gonna be tougher than I thought…" he muttered.

Blathers returned to the car, his face ashen white. He said something to the other animals, and they too froze. Copper opened the door to the caboose and called out, "Ratchet, we've got a problem! There's a roadblock ahead of us! We're gonna crash!"

The Lombax stared at him and yelled, "What?!"

Somehow, the robots had felled some trees and had placed them right on the train tracks. They sat right in the path of the Allies' train. They couldn't stop it in time; even if they could, the enemy train would crash into them.

Inside the car, Booker was panicking. _"We're all gonna diiiiiiiee!!_ I think…"

Patrick just grinned and said, "I like peanuts…I think…"

The fate of the Allies was sealed.

…_Or __**was**__ it?_

* * *

_Version 2 Author's Notes:_

Now you know the third crossover, SpongeBob SquarePants! I don't own him. SpongeBob was created by Steven Hillenburg and is owned by Nickelodeon. Now for two quick notes:

1) In the first version, I neglected the fact that SpongeBob and Patrick need water and can't stay out in dry air for too long ("Tea at the Tree Dome", anyone?). (But you know, they seemed fine when they were on land in the SpongeBob Movie...weird.) But for this new version, I have given them some bathtubs to sleep in and the occasional swim in the ocean or lake. They might not be much, but please cut me some slack; I tried.

2) Patrick is going to be a bit stupider than he normally is in the show...for the sake of humor, okay? Don't get me wrong; I love Patrick. I kind of need a very stupid character to supply the humor for this fic, and he fits the bill.


	6. Chapter 5: Enter the Blue Blur

Chapter #5: Enter the Blue Blur

In a desperate attempt to save the train, Spike ran into the engine car and pulled hard on the brake lever. The train's brakes squealed, but they weren't enough to slow it down in time. Jimmy tried to help, but they accomplished nothing…except accidentally break off the lever. The cars were a cacophony of noises: whistles from the enemy train, gunfire from the robots' trucks, the screeching brakes, chugging of the wheels, and the screaming of the terrified passengers.

Booker shouted for the umpteenth time, "We're doomed! …I think…"

"Why oh why did I leave the sea?!" wailed SpongeBob.

The dummy Patrick was sitting in his seat and looking out the window. Suddenly he pointed and cried, "I can see my rock from here!"

Coming back from the engine room, Spike yelled down the car to the caboose, "Hey, alien guy! How are things on your end?"

Over the din of Ratchet firing his Annihilator, he called back, "First off, I'm Ratchet! Second, we're not doin' so good! I got the trucks, but that train is _still_ comin' at us full force!"

Tom Nook shouted, "We're going to crash! _Brace yourselves!"_

Patrick asked him, "You mean put on geeky braces?"

Copper grabbed the starfish. _"No! Put your head down!"_

All of the passengers ducked, waiting for the end. The only exceptions were Spike, Jimmy, Ratchet, and Clank. They had heard something over all the noise, and it was getting louder and closer.

Jimmy got up and looked out a window. "That sounds like…"

Suddenly something whizzed by them, and the entire group stood up.

"_It's a bird!" _cried SpongeBob.

Copper yelled,_ "It's a plane!"_

Booker again said, _"It's a blimp!_ I think…"

And Patrick said the silliest. "No, it's an ice cream truck!"

"No really!" Copper exclaimed, pointing out the window. "It's a _plane!"_

It _was_ a plane. A _blue biplane_, to be exact. It was in front of the train, and it was headed straight for the roadblock!

Tortimer managed to get a good look at the pilot. "Well, I'll be derned. It's a _fox!"_

Copper went up beside him, watching the aircraft. "Foxes are supposed to be clever. What's he doin' driving ahead of us?! Is he out of his mind?!"

"No," said Spike, "I think I know what he's up to. If he's got guns…"

Just then the pilot fired a missile at the fallen trees, and the roadblock was blasted to smithereens!

Jimmy whooped. "He destroyed the roadblock!"

"_Yippee! _He saved us!" SpongeBob jumped up and did a little dance.

Tortimer shook his head with a big grin on his face. "That guy deserves a medal."

Ratchet and Clank had heard the commotion and saw the plane take out the roadblock, but there was still a problem. "Uhh…guys?" said the Lombax.

They turned to him.

"In case you haven't noticed, _that train is still on our tail!"_

The train suddenly lurched, and everyone was thrown onto their knees. Clank stood up and added, "And the robots are firing at us."

Copper glared at him. "We kinda found out already, thank you."

"Can't you take it out, Ratchet?" Blathers asked him desperately.

He shook his head. "My Annihilator is no good! It can't penetrate that armor! It's too thick!"

Clank said, "If we jettisoned a missile at a faster speed, the armor could be penetrated. According to my calculations, it would have to go almost as fast as the speed of sound…about 760 miles per hour."

The mayor threw his hands into the air. "Where are we goin' to get somethin' as fast as _that?!"_

Copper muttered sarcastically, "The only way that thing can be demolished is if lightning hits it!"

**BOOM!**

Everyone covered their ears, and many people shouted "What on earth was _that?!"_

"Guys, you've gotta see this!" Ratchet called from the caboose.

Tortimer, Tom Nook, Copper, Spike and Jimmy raced out onto the caboose's platform. They couldn't believe their eyes!

Off in the distance, there was a blue blur streaking across the plains!

Tom Nook exclaimed, "It's lightning! Scratch that; it's _blue lightning!"_

Copper gaped. "I've been jinxed!"

Spike looked up at the sky. "But there aren't any clouds!"

Jimmy looked around in bewilderment. "What's going on?!"

Suddenly Clank said, "Ratchet, I am picking up signals of a fast-moving object coming directly toward us. Its speed…_800 miles per hour."_

"_What?!"_ all of them cried at once.

"Is it an enemy?!" asked Tom.

"I do not think so," replied the robot. "It has changed course. It is headed for _the enemy train."_

Just then, there was a deafening crash. The animals' jaws dropped low.

The blue blur had smashed into the black train, and it had blown a perfect hole right through the locomotive!

"_Holy guacamole!" _said the mayor.

Tom's eyes remained locked on the train as it screeched to a stop, its engine car useless. _"What did this?!"_

**ZOOM!**

Clank said, "I believe the culprit has just gone right past us. Fortunately, I managed to get a reading of it as it passed."

Ratchet nodded his approval. "Give it to us, Clank."

"Processing data now…" Clank shut his eyes, and a whirring noise could be heard inside his body. Finally he opened his eyes and said, _"Origin: Unknown. Height: Approximately 4 feet. Velocity: 800 miles per hour due north and slowing. Condition: …__**Living."**_

Even Ratchet was surprised. _"Huh?!" _

Jimmy scratched his head for the millionth time. "What kinda animal can go faster than even a _racecar_?!"

"Even I am baffled," said Clank. "I have never seen a creature with this ability, even in our galaxy. Not even a robot could accomplish this feat."

Tom shrugged. "Well, whatever it is, I think we can find out soon. Like Clank said, that thing is headed north. We can follow it, since that plane took out the roadblock."

As if by magic, the train's brakes finally stopped the locomotive. When the gang looked, they realized they were in front of the AnimaCity Train Station. Tortimer, Tom Nook, and Copper raced out of the passenger's car and almost bumped into Porter.

"Welcome back to AnimaCity, friends!" the monkey greeted them.

Skipping the greetings, Copper asked, "Porter, have you seen anything whiz by here? Anything going faster than a racecar?!"

Porter smiled and shook his head as if the dog was crazy. "Sorry, fellas. The only fast things I've seen today are your train and that blue biplane that landed close by here."

Tortimer gave a start. _"Blue biplane?!_ Where is it? I need to find its pilot! He saved us from certain doom!"

"Err, I'm not sure exactly where he went. I think the plane landed somewhere in the A acres."

Ratchet, Clank, SpongeBob, Patrick, Spike, and Jimmy had hung back to help take the injured Allies out of the train. When they stepped out on the platform, Porter greeted them. "Welcome to AnimaCity! Ook ook!"

Jimmy's eyes widened. "Hey, look! A monkey!"

Spike saw the look he called "Monkey Catcher fever" in his cousin's eyes, and he yelled, _"Jimmy, wait!"_

It was too late. Jimmy pulled out his secondary weapon, the Monkey Net, and charged at poor Porter with the net in the air. _"You're mine, primate!"_

Upon seeing that the boy was mad, Porter shrieked and raced away from the train with Jimmy in hot pursuit. He was looking behind him, so he didn't watch where he was going. He collided with someone, and he fell onto the ground with a thud. When he got up, he discovered the person he had bumped into was a young fox, who looked no older than 10 years. He had blue eyes and wore a leather bomber jacket, the kind pilots wear.

"Oops. I'm terribly sorry, son," Porter said as he stood up and wiped dirt off his uniform.

"That's okay," replied the kit. "By the way, I'm looking for my friend. He was supposed to meet me at the train station. Have you seen him?"

"Err, what does he look like?"

Before the boy could answer, they heard Jimmy cry, "There you are! Come back here, you dirty primate!"

Again, Porter squealed in terror and dashed away. The fox, being curious, followed them. Porter decided to head back to the train station, and he hid in the passenger's car, where he found the newcomers. "Won't somebody stop him?!" he wailed.

Spike stepped out the car. "I'll take care of it," he said.

When Jimmy raced into the station, his cousin stopped him and proceeded to talk some sense into him. As he was doing so, the fox caught up with them, and Copper recognized him.

"Hey! You were the guy flyin' that blue plane! You saved us!" the police dog exclaimed.

The vulpine blushed and rubbed the scruff of his neck in embarrassment. "Oh yeah, that. Well, I didn't do it alone. You wouldn't have made it to the station if my friend hadn't helped you."

Porter came out from behind Ratchet and said, "You never did describe him for me."

Suddenly all the activity at the station came to a halt, and the animals and newcomers paused. Their ears were picking up a strange noise; it sounded like a racecar of some sort. But as it approached the train station, the noise vanished, and all that was heard was the sound of feet pounding on gravel. When that stopped, there was silence. And then…a casual voice.

"Whew, what a run! I like this place already; it's got plenty of room!"

A pair of gloved hands grasped the edge of the train platform, and the Allies and the heroes backed away from the area. All of them stared at the unusual character that climbed up and stood before them.

He was a blue hedgehog with green eyes, red sneakers, and a cocky, confident grin. He certainly didn't look like a local; he didn't even look like he was from Animal Crossing.

For a moment the astonished animals simply blinked, but then Tortimer cleared his throat and stepped forward with a hand outstretched. "Welcome to AnimaCity, stranger. I'm Tortimer, the town mayor. And you are…?"

The hedgehog took his hand and shook it, his smile growing wider. "I'm Sonic the Hedgehog," he replied.

The fox walked up to him and said, "Hey, Sonic, what took you so long? I thought you'd beat me here."

He shrugged. "I didn't wanna lead those robots to this town, Tails—had to take a detour. By the way, I saw you blast the roadblock; good job." He held up a hand, and they did a high-five. Then the fox began to take off his jacket. (He was hot, okay?)

Jimmy scratched his head. "'Tails'? Why are you called—"

The kit finished removing the jacket, and the boy got his answer.

"_Whoa! _You have _two_ tails!"

Tails blushed again. "Um, yeah, I do. …Do you think it's weird?"

The six newcomers looked at each other with mutual thoughts; from the way he had asked the question, they guessed that he had been teased about his extra tail before. Jimmy gave his answer honestly.

"Actually, no. They're kinda cool!"

Tails' face lit up, and his ears pricked forward. Behind him, Sonic, who had been ready to defend his buddy if the wrong answer had been given, relaxed and smiled.

Suddenly Clank, who had gotten off Ratchet's back, approached the new pair, his green eyes filled with curiosity. "Pardon me if I sound rude, but I have a question." He looked at the blue hedgehog. "Why are you called 'Sonic'? I know that the name derives from the word 'supersonic', which refers to the sound barrier."

Sonic leaned against a nearby column, the smirk still on his face. "It's because I can run faster than the speed of sound."

The robot's eyes became brighter in astonishment. "Would I be correct, then, in assuming _you_ were the one who destroyed the black train?"

Sonic grinned again and nodded. "Yup. That was me."

There was stunned silence. And then Jimmy said, "Whoa."

Tortimer shook his head in disbelief. "Well, I'll be derned. You don't know how thankful we are for that deed, Sonic, and for your friend's. Since you're not from around here, my associates and I would like to talk with you and six of our other new friends at the museum. You don't mind, do ya?"

The hedgehog and the fox looked at each other, then back and replied in unison, "Not at all."

It was Clank who appeared hesitant at first, and he said, "What about the hostages and injured men you brought aboard your train?"

The mayor gestured to the train station, where other agents were helping those very animals off the train and toward a different part of the town (specifically, the Post Office). "We have folks in charge of takin' care of them. You've all done your part in that area."

This seemed to satisfy him, and he hopped aboard Ratchet again. "Very well. Let us proceed."

"Good! Foller me then, y'all!"

Sonic, Tails, and the other three duos followed Tortimer and the other Alliance leaders, not knowing that one of their greatest adventures was about to begin.

* * *

_Version 2 Author's Notes:_

There you have it! My fourth and final crossover is Sonic the Hedgehog! He and Tails are owned by SEGA.

On a different note, I have had a couple people say that Sonic steals the show in this story. So, I would like to apologize. Sonic is my favorite franchise out of all of these crossovers (and the archive I am most experienced in, as far as fanfiction goes), so I did give him an edge. I did, however, try my best to give some kudos to the other pairs. So, to those who like the other pairs better, I'm sorry. (sheepish grin)


	7. Chapter 6: The Heroes Unite

_Version 2 Author's Notes:_

Since I changed Ratchet & Clank's intro chapter, I changed their flashback in this chapter as well. Check it out if you like.

* * *

Chapter #6: The Heroes Unite

A few minutes later, the Animal Alliance leaders (Tortimer, Tom Nook, Copper, Booker, and Blathers) and their eight new companions were in the museum's main lobby. Blathers pressed the secret basement's "doorbell", and the clock moved away. The newcomers were impressed by the secret passage.

Sonic whistled and said, "Pretty clever."

"I never would've thought that was there," Spike remarked with a shake of his head.

Clank said to Copper, "I presume that no enemies have stumbled upon this hideout yet?"

The dog responded, "Yup; it's the safest place in the entire town, which is why we're bringing you here to talk."

All eight of them followed the Allies into the basement in a single file. When the animals took their seats, the gang followed suit. But just as Ratchet was sitting down, he noticed two young raccoons snoozing in sleeping bags next to the fireplace. "Who are those two?" he asked Tom Nook, jerking his thumb at them.

The shopkeeper replied, "Those are my sons, Timmy and Tommy."

"You're married, then?"

He quickly shook his head. "Oh, no. I adopted them when they were very young. They're also my pupils at my shop."

"May I inquire as to why they are here?" asked Clank.

"I took them here before I went out on our mission; you know, just in case Big Boss found out that I'm an agent. He would capture them if he did. Let's leave them be."

With that explained, Tortimer briefed the gang on what the Animal Alliance knew about Big Boss's history in Animal Crossing. When he finished, Clank asked, "Do we have identification on this man? If 'Big Boss' is really his alias, we need to know his characteristics. Big Boss might not even be a he."

The mayor shook his head sadly. "We don't know what he looks like at all. Anybody who's ever seen 'im is in his dungeon."

"So much for identification," mumbled Ratchet.

"What about those robots we saw?" Tails asked a bit timidly. "Are they Big Boss's minions? They're an interesting make."

Blathers took over on the subject of robots and debriefed the group on the known models (which were discussed in the intro). After covering them on this, he explained how they functioned as an army. "The robots are programmed to only perform their duties, and they take orders from only Big Boss and anyone he calls allies, us excluded. They're told to arrest no one unless they're causing trouble for the town, and they must have a warrant for an arrest, much like our original police force."

"In other words," Copper cut in, "they won't bother us animals unless we cause trouble."

"Like trespassing and espionage?" guessed Ratchet.

Tom Nook nodded. "You got it. So now you know what position we're in. We have to be extra careful about what we do and that we don't give away the identities of our operatives. We also have to careful about what we tell to animals that aren't members."

Tortimer continued for Nook. "That's why we brought the eight of you here; we wanna know what each of ya are doin' here. We didn't send any messengers askin' fer help, and we're cut off from the rest of the world." He turned to Spike and Jimmy. "Let's start with you two."

Shifting in his red armchair, Spike said, "Okay. Well, like we told Copper, we got warped here by accident."

Jimmy butted in, "You see, we know this professor who has a machine that can warp you anywhere you want. It's summer at our home, so Spike and I wanted to go to a beach resort on the other side of our country."

"Our friend Natalie helped us get the portal ready. I guess she put in the wrong coordinates, and we ended up here," Spike finished.

Tom Nook nodded his head; the story seemed to check out. "Hmm, very interesting. Well, if we can contact your friends and let them know about your mistake, we can send you back home. In the meantime, I think you'd better stay with us."

Shrugging, the older boy replied, "I don't mind at all."

"Maybe we can help you beat Big Boss while we're waiting!" piped up Jimmy.

Tortimer cocked one eyebrow, uncertain of letting two innocent humans fight a dangerous war that wasn't theirs. Copper noticed and told him, "I told you before that they're good with their Stun Clubs, Tortimer. They could make great allies."

"He's right," Tom agreed. Then to Spike and Jimmy he asked, "Where did you learn to fight like that?!"

"We both needed to fight fierce if we were going to accomplish our missions, saving the world and all," replied Spike with a shrug.

"_Savin' the world?!" _exclaimed the mayor.

Copper's eyes were wide with surprise. "You guys never said anything about that!"

With a knowing grin, Sonic said to Spike, "Lemme guess…you stopped evil, super-smart monkeys before they could take over the world."

The teen's jaw dropped. "How did you know?!"

"Lucky guess. Tails told me about your cousin chasing Porter."

Jimmy blushed in embarrassment. "Heh heh heh. I guess that was a mistake."

"Porter's forgiven you already, kid," Tortimer assured him. "Don't worry about it."

With Spike and Jimmy's story settled, Tom Nook said, "Now, what about our two sea creature friends?"

At the mentioning of him and Patrick, SpongeBob perked up and cried, "That's us!"

Patrick cocked his head like a puppy and said, "Us?"

"Yes, you two," said Nook. "Why did you leave the sea?"

SpongeBob explained, "Patrick and I sometimes take a walk on the beach. We saw him," he pointed at Booker, "and we wanted to help. Then the robot attacked us, and…well, you guys came."

"…I see."

"Did that robot work for Plankton?"

"No, it worked fer Big Boss," Tortimer replied with a puzzled look. "Who's Plankton, though?"

"He tries to steal a secret formula from my boss, Mr. Krabs. One time he did get it, and he took control of everybody's minds with his special helmets. But Patrick and I stopped him!"

The other strangers look at the pair in surprise; they certainly didn't _look_ like heroes. Jimmy spoke for them. "Wow, pretty cool for sea creatures."

Blathers nodded in agreement. "Very impressive. Now, what about you, Ratchet and Clank? I know that you crashed, but you never told me why. A system failure on your ship?"

Ratchet's face turned a little red. "Well, not exactly…"

* * *

**Flashback in Solana Galaxy**

In the vastness of outer space, Ratchet and Clank were cruising in their red starfighter, quite bored. They had just finished their latest adventure, and now they wanted to have a small vacation, even though it was likely that it would get rudely interrupted…as usual.

The duo sat in their seats silently, both contemplating possible vacation spots. Finally Clank turned to Ratchet and said, "Ratchet, do you want to visit Planet Pokitaru?"

"Nah, I'm sick of their beaches and resorts," replied the Lombax. "In fact, I'm bored with every planet in this system!"

So Clank decided to think outside the box…or more like outside the galaxy. After a few minutes of calculating, his eyes turned yellow and had a light bulb icon in their centers. "How about the Bogon Galaxy?" he asked.

Only a second after he said that, Ratchet's face lit up. "Hey, I've got an idea! Why don't we visit the Bogon Galaxy?!"

"That is what I said!"

Ignoring that last comment, Ratchet added, "Let's drop in on my old employer Abercrombie Fizzwidget." Then he began to punch in a few numbers and push buttons. "Fasten your seat belt. I'm engaging the gravimetric warp drive."

The robot's eyes brightened a few watts. "…The one you built from Blargian scrap metal?"

"The same."

Clank hurriedly strapped into his seat. But when he finished, he double-checked of the coordinates in the autopilot. "Ratchet, I think you made a miscalculation."

But the Lombax wasn't listening, and began pulling the lever that would start the warp drive.

"Ratchet, wait!"

But it was too late. The ship fired up its engines and rocketed into space at lightning speed, with its pilots screaming in terror.

**ZOOM!**

After what seemed like an hour, the crazy ride ended. Despite his seat belt, Clank was upside down in his seat, and Ratchet had flown out of his seat and into the back of the cockpit. Groaning, the Lombax and the robot repositioned themselves and looked at the ship's surroundings.

None of the stars looked familiar…

"This doesn't look good," Ratchet muttered.

After unclipping the seat belts, Clank went over to the ship computer and pressed some buttons next to the galactic map. "Oh dear," he moaned. "The journey has taxed the gravimetric warp drive. It has been disabled beyond any repair available to us at this moment."

The Lombax blinked in slight confusion as this sank in. "You mean…we're stuck here? …Wherever 'here' is?"

"I am afraid so. Our normal engines can function properly, but warping at light speed is out of the question." The robot checked the coordinates. "And this is not our system or Bogon. This is the Milky Way Galaxy."

Ratchet snorted at the name. "Never heard of it."

"The humans originated from this galaxy, from the planet Earth. That is the only planet in the galaxy with civilization."

His face contorted into a frown. "Humans? …You mean, people like Captain Qwark?"

"He is a variation of their species, yes. But these humans have four fingers and a thumb."

"And let's hope a higher IQ," grumbled the Lombax. "So, where do we go from here?"

"…I…am not sure. The computer has some information on the galaxy, but not much. I am surprised that the computer actually recognized the coordinates; much of this galaxy has not been mapped out for us."

"So, we're stuck in a virtually unexplored galaxy with hardly any people, and those people might be morons," Ratchet growled. "…Perfect…just perfect. This wasn't my idea of a vacation."

"It was not mine either," Clank concurred with a sigh. He looked through the cockpit window, hoping for some kind of miracle. And he got it; he spotted something huge and spherical not far from them. "Perhaps we can land there," he said and pointed at the object for Ratchet.

The object was a planet; it was mostly blue with green and brown areas on it. Immediately Ratchet brightened. There was a landing place! And maybe civilization!

Clank added, "I believe we might be in luck; that appears to be Earth itself. Its location must be recorded in our mapping systems."

The Lombax's spirits rose even more. "Let's go there and see if they have the right tools to repair our ship! I just hope this ol' starfighter can take the entrance into the atmosphere."

Luckily for them, the ship handled the entrance fairly well. But when Clank looked at the land they flew above, he became a little worried. "It is just land and small villages," he said. "There are no cities. The chances of getting a new warp drive appear to be slim."

Ratchet groaned and checked the fuel gauge. But as he looked back up, he exclaimed in surprise, "Hey! There's a factory dead ahead!" He pushed harder on the gas, eager to reach the factory for parts.

But as they got closer, Clank noticed something, and he said, "Err…Ratchet?"

But the commando didn't hear him. "I'll bet they've got tools and new parts!"

"Ratchet?"

"If I can convince 'em we aren't invading Earth, we can—"

"Ratchet!"

"What?!" yelled Ratchet angrily.

"Have you noticed that there are heavy-duty turrets on the roof of that factory?"

"Huh?!"

The Lombax finally noticed the black turrets positioned on the corners of the factory, and they swiveled around to put their markers on the intruding starfighter.

"And they are aiming right at us," Clank added with wide eyes.

"Uh…oh. Uhh…" weakly Ratchet held up one hand and parted his fingers Spock-style, "…we come in peace?"

_Boom!_

The turrets hit the ship's thrusters hard. The engine quit, and Ratchet and Clank found themselves losing altitude. _Fast. _The Lombax worked hard to control their fall, but both couldn't help but scream as they plummeted down, down towards the ocean…

**Flashback Ends**

* * *

As he finished the account, Ratchet glared at Clank. "If you had warned me about the turrets sooner…"

"I tried, but you were not listening!" Clank exclaimed with his hands held up.

"…Never mind."

"Don't worry, Ratchet," Tortimer tried to reassure him. "We can try to find one of those whatchamacallits ya need to git back to your galaxy. By the way, where did you git all those weapons ya have?"

Ratchet shrugged and replied. "I bought 'em with my money. Since I'm a commando in the Solana Galaxy, I need the best weapons out there."

"Whoa. First the world, then the sea, and now a galaxy!" Copper said.

The animals nodded their heads in unanimous agreement, and then Tom Nook turned to the last pair. "Sonic, Tails, it's your turn."

The blue hedgehog sat back in his chair and told them, "Our story isn't much. Tails and I like to travel around the world, and we just happened to come upon Animal Crossing."

Tails added, "We saw you guys fighting the robots and escaping on the train, and we decided to help."

With a small grin, Sonic said, "We have a habit of saving people."

"Lemme guess," Tortimer butted in with a delighted smile, "you've saved the world too?"

Sonic's grin grew wider. "Yup. Mad scientists are our specialty."

Copper leaped out of his seat and exclaimed, "Evil monkeys and crazy scientists! You guys are _all_ heroes!"

Timmy and Tommy, although it had looked like they had been asleep, had been listening to the meeting. Upon hearing Copper's words, they leaped up out of their sleeping bags.

"_Heroes?!"_ Tommy cried, with Timmy echoing. "Our wish came true! You've come to help us!"

The group of heroes was a bit puzzled, but they dared not disappoint the coons. Spike replied, "Uhh…well, yes, in a way."

The twins threw shouted _"Hurray!"_ and started dancing on the floor with joy. The heroes and the adult animals looked on with amusement.

"Wow, things have really turned in our favor this time," said Blathers. "You heroes are just what we need to drive Big Boss and his goons out of our home."

Tom looked at the heroes, his tone serious but his face creased with a hopeful grin. "Will you really help us defeat Big Boss?" he asked.

The vote was unanimous.

Sonic jumped out of his chair. "I'm always game for an adventure!"

Tails was up beside him in an instant. "Yeah!"

Ratchet shrugged and smiled; his and Clank's vacation might have been ruined, but he was always up for a good battle. "Sure!"

Clank stood up on the arm of the chair again. "I accept!"

"We're in!" said Spike with a thumbs-up.

Jimmy pulled out his Monkey and thrust it up in the air. "Let's do it!" he cried.

SpongeBob got up and started hopping in place. "I'm ready!"

"Hooray!" yelled Patrick, who then added with a scratch of his head, "I think…"

Tortimer was the most delighted of all the Allies. "Y'all don't know how much this means to us. Thanks to each of ya," he said with a small tear in his eye.

Tom Nook took charge. "Well then, you can't save the world if you stay in this basement! We need to find you a nice home while you're here! In fact, I know of the perfect place! Follow me, fellows!"

The eight heroes darted up the stairs after the raccoon, eager to see what place they would be staying in.


	8. Chapter 7: Eight Heroes, One House

Chapter #7: Eight Heroes, One House

Tom Nook led the gang of heroes over a bridge to a clearing in the forest, and they saw a massive mansion surrounded by a white picket fence and some apple trees. They stared gawk-eyed while the raccoon dug into his pockets for the keys to the house.

"So _this_ is where all of us will be staying?" Spike asked.

"Indeed it is," Nook replied. "Normally the houses I build aren't this size from the start, but a group of humans moved in and paid me enough money to remodel it into a mansion. They were quite the faithful workers…sadly, they aren't here now; they left after Big Boss came too close to AnimaCity." He finally found the keys and unlocked the gate. But just then he realized something. "Oh dear…"

"What's the problem, Nookmeister?" Sonic said.

"I just remembered something: only _four_ humans lived here. Your number is twice that, and that could be a bit of a problem. It could get very cramped in the attic that they used as a bedroom."

Ratchet shrugged (a bad habit of his) and said, "Hey, I'm used to cramped quarters; the sleeping cubicles on the _Starship Phoenix _are much smaller than this. I think we can cope with it by sleeping in other rooms."

Sonic nodded. "I don't see a problem with that idea."

"Sounds good to me," Spike put in.

Tom looked at SpongeBob, who pointed at the others and replied, "What they said."

Clank, who had been scanning the house, turned to Nook and said, "I presume that while we inhabit this structure, we must lie low and not agitate the existing law enforcement."

The coon was confused by Clank's choice of words. "Huh?"

Tails quickly stepped in. "He meant that we shouldn't show ourselves to any robots and cause trouble."

Ratchet stared at the fox in amazement. "You can understand him?! Half the time he talks, I have to look in a dictionary to understand what he said!"

Tom Nook, who was quite happy that the heroes were fine with the slightly cramped arrangement, clapped his hands together and said, "All right then! Go ahead and make yourselves at home! I suggest you clean out the house and bed down for the night." He looked at his watch. "I need to get back to my store. Don't be afraid to visit if you need anything! I'll send someone to bring you to my shop tomorrow morning at around 7:15, so be ready! Good night!" With that farewell, he walked away in the direction of Nookington's.

There was a bit of silence, and then SpongeBob exclaimed, "Let's check out the house!" Before anyone could stop him, he opened the door and ran inside. Seconds later, they heard a high-pitched scream. A terrified SpongeBob raced out the door and leaped into Sonic's arms. "Don't go in there!" he yelled while pointing at the house. "The humans who lived there were monsters!"

Ratchet rolled his eyes and muttered, "Oh brother."

Patrick, for some strange reason, asked an intelligent question. "What's so scary about a house, SpongeBob?" Ignoring his buddy's warnings, he stepped into the house. He also screamed and leaped into Sonic's arms. The combined weight of the two sea creatures knocked the hedgehog down.

"All right! Enough already! _Get off of me!" _Sonic managed to shout from under the "dog-pile".

Spike and Ratchet quickly came to the rescue and picked up SpongeBob and Patrick, and Sonic got to his feet. Spike put down SpongeBob and said, "Let's see what these two loons are so scared about!" and walked through the doorway into the house. Instead of a scream, they heard a low whistle and "It's OK, guys. Come on in!"

The rest of the gang, including SpongeBob and Patrick, went inside. Once they were inside and looked around, they finally understood what the two sea creatures had been scared of. The humans that had lived there had loved to go fishing.

"_Fish aquariums?!" _Ratchet said.

Patrick resumed being stupid. "What are fish aquariums?"

SpongeBob stared at a sea bass in a saltwater tank. "What a poor, innocent creature…" he whimpered. Many of them rolled their eyes, and Ratchet glared at SpongeBob and Patrick, growling and muttering to himself.

After much discussion, the heroes decided to use four rooms as bedrooms, to leave the main living room alone, and to use the second-floor room as storage space for the humans' useless furniture. The four chosen bedrooms were the three small rooms on the first floor and the attic, which the humans had used as a bedroom before. It took the gang until sundown to clean up their rooms and carry the useless stuff up into the second floor. But then, as they rested in the living room, they realized they had a problem: what were they going to sleep on? They hadn't seen any beds in the house at all; what had happened to them?

"If only we had some sleeping bags…" Spike mumbled.

"There's gotta be some beds around here somewhere!" Sonic said. "I'll go upstairs and look in the wardrobes. There's a phone up in the attic, too, so we can call Nook; he gave me his cell phone number on the way to the house."

As Sonic went upstairs to look for some beds, Ratchet searched in the wardrobes in the other rooms. A minute later, the Lombax triumphantly returned with leaf-shaped items in his arms. "Hey, guys! I found some beds!"

Jimmy happily leaped up from his seat on a ranch couch. "All right Ratchet! Not bad for an alien!"

"Uhhh…thanks, I guess…"

Tails took some of the beds and counted them. "Uh oh. There are only _four_ beds!"

Clank piped up, "I have no need for one; therefore, we are missing three more sleeping units."

Spike and Ratchet looked at each other and smiled mischievously. "Looks like some of us aren't goin' to sleep comfortably tonight," said the Lombax, "and it's not going to be me."

Spike's fists were up in an instant. "I'll fight you for it!"

"Please, guys! Don't fight!" pleaded Tails.

Clank added, "This act of violence is not necessary."

SpongeBob soon joined the argument over the beds. "I want a bed! I don't wanna sleep on the floor! It's cold!"

Of course, Patrick had to be the doofus he is. "What's a floor?"

Spike turned and said, "Oh shut up, you moron! _You _can sleep on the floor!"

"I'm not a moron!" retorted Patrick.

"Prove it to me! What's 1+1?"

"That's easy! It's _6!"_

Spike, Jimmy, Ratchet, and Tails slapped their foreheads, and SpongeBob said, "Gee, even _I _didn't know that."

Jimmy stared at the sponge. "Aw, come on! Even _preschoolers_ know that's wrong! Your friend is dumber than he looks!"

This remark offended the sponge. "Nobody insults my best friend!" In an instant he had equipped his karate gear. _"Take this!" _he cried, and rushed forward to attack Jimmy. Spike rushed in to defend his cousin, and soon the trio was fighting in the midst of a cloud of dust. Tails and Clank backed off, shouting and trying to tell them to stop.

At the same time, Patrick stared at Ratchet with a goofy look on his face. Finally Ratchet snapped, "What are _you_ lookin' at?"

"I don't speak Spanish," replied the starfish.

"I'm _not _speakin' Spanish!"

"Gesundheit."

"Idiot!"

Patrick grinned. "Thank you!"

Spike stopped fighting for a moment to stare at Patrick. "Yup, he's retarded," he remarked.

"_He is __**not**__ retarded!" _shouted SpongeBob, who pounced on Spike in retaliation.

Clank climbed onto a blue clock and called down to the fighting trio, "You are all being childish. We do not have to quarrel about this predicament! We can find a solution!"

"Let me go get Sonic and see what he says!" suggested Tails.

"Who's Sonic?" said Patrick.

This caused Ratchet to lose his temper with the starfish, and he dove at him, shouting, "Shut up, you ding-dong!"

In seconds, everyone but Tails and Clank were wrestling in the middle of the room, creating a cloud of dust. Fists, Stun Clubs, and Ratchet's Omniwrench flew all over the place. Battle cries…and shouts of pain…filled the air.

"_Take that!!"_

"Ouch! That's my eye!"

"Take _this!!"_

"_Hiiiyaaaa!!"_

"Ow! My stomach!"

Up until then, Patrick hadn't really been fighting, just rolling around and laughing his socks off. But when someone shouted, "Who stomped on my hand?!", that changed everything. He perked up and said, "Stomping?! I wanna start stomping!" The crazy starfish lunged at Ratchet and grabbed his tail.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" Ratchet protested.

Then Patrick did the one thing you should _never_ do to a Lombax: he stomped on his tail!

"_Aaaaaarrgghh!!"_ Ratchet screamed as his tail was crushed. Then pain suddenly turned into rage, and Ratchet turned to Patrick with furious eyes and yelled,_"Patrick, you're goin' down!!"_

The starfish's eyes widened at the sight of the angry Lombax, and he said, "Should I start screaming now?"

Ratchet grabbed Patrick by the throat and began strangling him. From the safety of his seat on the ranch couch, Tails tried to persuade him to calm down, but nothing he said helped. Suddenly, the lights went out, and everyone was enveloped in darkness. The fighting finally ceased, but it was replaced with confused shouts.

"Hey, what happened?!" cried Jimmy.

Ratchet let go of Patrick and called out, "Where is everybody?"

Somewhere in the darkness, they heard SpongeBob sucking his thumb. "It's dark!" he whimpered. "I'm scared of the dark!"

Clank tried to explain the sudden lack of light. "A light bulb probably burned out, friends. There is no need to be frightened."

"Yeah right!" Spike butted in. "Somebody turned out the lights, is what happened!"

"What are lights?" said a dumb voice.

Spike turned to the person to his left and said, "Shut up, Patrick!"

"I'm not Patrick! I'm Jimmy!" yelled the person. "Patrick's next to me!"

"Sorry, I don't know Portuguese," said Patrick.

"I'm speakin' _English_, you moron!" Spike barked back.

"I'd _love _some roast beef!"

"_Aaaarrrrgggghhhh!!"_

This time Ratchet spoke up. "So who turned out the lights?!"

All of them jumped when they heard the stairs creak. A familiar voice spoke. "I turned 'em off."

SpongeBob gasped. "Who's that?!"

Ratchet, who was sitting next to SpongeBob, slapped him. "It's just Sonic, you goofball!"

The lights came back on, and there stood Sonic, with his index finger on the light switch. "We're supposed to lie low, remember? Fighting is only gonna draw attention to us."

Patrick put on a goofy grin and said, "So we can't turn off the lights?"

The hedgehog smacked his forehead. "No. As long as we live here, we can't fight and cause a ruckus. Agreed?"

The group (minus Patrick) nodded and said, "Agreed."

And Patrick just said with a doofus grin, "Alpacas."

Jimmy raised his hand like a student in class. "What about the beds? What are we gonna do with them?"

Sonic replied, "I saw some bathtubs in the attic. Don't SpongeBob and Patrick need water?"

Said sponge yelped, "Hey, yeah, you're right! I was beginning to feel dry! We'll use those tubs!"

"But that leaves one more required sleeping unit," Clank pointed out.

"That's easy: _I _won't sleep on a bed," Sonic replied. "I'll sleep on the roof." Everyone but Tails (who was used to this habit) stared at him in puzzlement. "Don't worry, I'll be fine up there. Poke your head out the window of ya need me."

Sonic walked back up the stairs and climbed out the window onto the roof. With that problem solved, the others got the beds and put two in each room. SpongeBob and Patrick went into the attic, filled up the tubs, and fell asleep while rejuvenating their water-dependent bodies. Spike and Jimmy slept in the study, Tails placed his bed in the one that had previously been the game room, and Ratchet and Clank lay down in the guestroom. They all fell asleep as soon as their heads hit their pillows.


	9. Chapter 8: Rise and Shine!

Chapter #8: Rise and Shine!

The morning came with the rising of the bright sun, and the clock on the town hall chimed the hour, 7:00 AM. The ringing woke up Sonic, who had been snoozing on top of the roof. Yawning, he rubbed his eyes and got up to stretch, but he almost fell off of the roof. He quickly regained his balance and sat back down.

"Morning' already?" he mumbled as he yawned again. "Better wake up the others and get some breakfast."

With one last stretch, the blue hedgehog climbed into the house through the window. He was about to shout when he noticed that SpongeBob and Patrick were still in their bathtubs…and, oddly enough, they were talking in their sleep.

"I'm ready, promotion…I'm ready, promotion…I'm ready, promotion…" said SpongeBob as he dreamed of his home and his job.

While sucking his thumb with a dopey grin, Patrick mumbled, "Ice cream with nuts, bolts, and extra springs please."

Sonic rolled his eyes. "Spike was right. Patrick's an idiot."

With a shrug, he tiptoed downstairs through the living room to check on his buddy Tails; he found him sleeping peacefully in the game room. The hedgehog decided not to wake him and checked the study and the guestroom; Spike, Jimmy, Ratchet, and Clank were still asleep, too. Then he returned to the living room and searched the house's two refrigerators and green pantry for food. He found boxes of cereal and granola bars and set them on a ranch table. Then he looked at the classic clock in the room; it said 7:05. Nook was sending somebody to meet them in ten minutes, and his friends were _still_ asleep!

"If the town bell didn't wake them up, what will?" the blue hedgehog said to himself.

Then he noticed the hi-fi stereo in the room and got an idea; wasn't there a CD player in Ratchet and Clank's room? With a snicker, he crept into the guestroom. There lay Ratchet, sleeping in the modern bed, with Clank snoozing in a red armchair beside the bed. The Lombax was lying with his back very close to the edge of the bed: the perfect position for a prank. Sonic tiptoed behind Ratchet to the exotic end table where the CD player sat. He opened the player and, after searching the music collection, he selected a song called "Go K.K. Rider!" With a mischievous smile, he cranked up the volume and pressed the play button.

The music blared out louder than Sonic had thought it would, but he got the results he wanted. Ratchet's eyes popped open, and his head jerked up. "What the…?!" he tried to say, but then he lost his balance and fell to the floor.

Sonic shut off the player and laughed. "What happened, Ratchet? Woke up on the wrong side of the bed?" he teased.

"Oh shut up," Ratchet grumbled as he sat up.

The music also brought Clank out of sleep mode. His eyes came on, and his limbs and head unfolded from their compact position. Once he was finished, he inquired, "What has happened?"

Ratchet pointed at Sonic with his thumb and replied, "Mr. Wise Guy here woke me up with a CD player."

The robot leaped out of the armchair and asked Sonic, "Are the others awake yet?"

"I don't think so. They were asleep when I last checked."

The trio walked into the living room, where they found Tails munching on one of the granola bars Sonic had found. "Hey, guys," he said around a mouthful of his snack. "Spike and Jimmy are still asleep; I checked."

Sonic whistled. "I had that song up pretty loud. I thought it would wake everybody."

A smile slowly spread on Ratchet's face. "Then let's give 'em a wake-up call."

They crept into the study, where the two red-haired cousins were sleeping on two blue beds. The Lombax opened a blue cabinet and pulled out two alarm clocks (he had found them last night when he had been looking for beds). After setting them to go off in fifteen seconds, he set one under Jimmy's pillow and the other next to Spike's ear. Then Ratchet stepped away from the beds and began counting on his fingers.

"Explosion in 10 seconds…9 seconds…8…7…6…5…4…"

The group ducked behind an exotic chest.

"…3…2…1…"

**Rrriiiiiiinnnggg!!**

"_**Aaaaaahhh!!" **_

"_**Yyeeeooowww!!" **_

The pair of humans fell out of their beds, clutching their ears. "Make it stop! Make it stop!" Jimmy cried.

Sonic and Ratchet busted out laughing, and fell to the floor. The hedgehog pounded the floor with his fists. Tails and Clank tried hard not to laugh, but they had to turn away to hide their smiles and cover their mouths to muffle their laughs.

It was quite obvious to the boys that they had been the victims of a prank, and Spike was furious. _"Sonic!! Ratchet!!"_

But the two weren't fazed a bit and kept up their fit. "You guys should've seen the looks on your faces!" Ratchet told them.

"It's not very funny!" said Jimmy, his face red with embarrassment.

"All right, all right, you've had your fun," Spike said. "Are SpongeNerd DorkyPants and his sidekick 'The Brain' awake yet?"

Finished with his laughing, Sonic got up and replied, "They were sleepin' like babies when I last checked."

"After all of the noise," Clank put in, "I would not be surprised if they are awake."

All six of them went up the creaky stairs into the attic. To their amazement, SpongeBob and Patrick were _still_ asleep! Ratchet nudged the starfish with his Omniwrench, and then he clubbed him on the head with it. Nothing happened.

"That's for stompin' on my tail, you dunce," he muttered to the snoozing starfish.

Patrick replied in his sleep, _"No habla Ingles."_ (Spanish for "I don't speak English.")

Spike sighed and asked him, _"Si habla Espanol?"_ (Spanish for "Do you speak Spanish?")

He shook his head and answered, "Uh uh."

"What a numbskull," Ratchet said.

Jimmy returned the group to the main subject by asking, "How are we gonna wake them up?"

They came up with several ideas, such as shouting and shaking the sea creatures. But none of them worked, and the pair continued to mumble in their sleep.

"I'm ready, promotion…I'm ready, promotion…"

"Ice cream with nuts, bolts, and extra springs please."

Suddenly Tails brightened. "I have an idea!" He stepped over to SpongeBob's bed and whispered, "Hey SpongeBob, you've been promoted!"

The sponge's eyes snapped open, and he leaped out of the bathtub, splashing Tails and yelling, _"YAAAAYYY!!_ I've been promoted to…uhhh, wait a minute…oh, hi guys! I guess I was dreaming."

"I said you were promoted to wake you up," Tails explained to him.

"Do ya know how we can wake your buddy?" asked Ratchet with a gesture towards the snoozing starfish.

SpongeBob thought for a moment, scratching his head. Then he shrugged and replied, "Nope, no clue! Sorry!"

Sonic suggested to them, "Lemme try what Tails did," and he tiptoed to Patrick's bed.

"But Patrick doesn't have a job!" SpongeBob objected.

Spike slapped his forehead and whispered to him, "He's not gonna say the same thing, ya brick."

"Ohhhh…"

"Oh Patrick," the hedgehog said in an almost sing-song voice, "the ice cream parlor's giving away _free ice cream!"_

Patrick's reaction was similar to SpongeBob's. He jumped out of the tub and fell flat on his face. Then he got up and started running in circles. _"Yaay!! Free ice cream!! Get me a chocolate!!" _he shouted.

SpongeBob stopped his antics and told him, "Sorry, Pat. Sonic was just trying to wake you up."

He scratched his head and asked, "Who's Sonic?"

Ratchet pointed at the blue hedgehog and said to the starfish, _**"He's **__Sonic, pinhead!"_

"Who ya callin' pinhead?"

"Grrrr…"

"Ignore him, Ratchet," Spike said with a roll of his eyes. "He doesn't know the difference between an apple and an orange."

"Yeah I do!" Patrick protested. "Apples grow on vines, and oranges grow on peanut trees!" He grinned stupidly at his "intelligence".

Spike looked at Ratchet and said, "See what I mean?" The Lombax nodded silently.

Then Patrick started hopping up and down on his rear while holding his feet. He sang, "Oh, I'm a Goofy Goober, yeah! You're a Goofy Goober, yeah! We're all Goofy Goobers, yeah! Goofy goofy, goober goober, _yeah!"_

As he began to sing the song again, all of the gang (minus SpongeBob, who was used to the song) covered their ears. Ratchet shouted to the others, "Someone _please_ shut him up!"

Patrick finished the song and started running in mad circles again, crying out random things. "Ice cream! Alpacas! Ketchup!" Then he slammed into the wall and fell flat on his back, laughing hysterically.

The seven freaked-out heroes remained silent, and crickets that the humans had collected chirped. The quiet was broken when Tails said, "Okaaaay…"

_Ding-dong!_

"Hey! That's the doorbell!" Jimmy cried. "I'll get it!" Everyone slowly walked up the stairs in a single file.

_You wish._

Eager to be the one to answer the door, they all shoved each other and tried to get down the stairs first. But their careless pushing sent all of them tumbling down the stairs, and they landed in a heap of twisted arms and legs.

"Ohhh, man, what happened?" mumbled Tails, who was, unfortunately, stuck at the bottom of the pile.

"Whose foot is in my mouth?!" SpongeBob screamed in a muffled voice as a red shoe (which was Sonic's) choked him.

"_Ow!_ Who twisted my arm?!" Sonic cried out in pain.

Ratchet rubbed his nose and yelled, "Whose Stun Club hit me in the nose?!"

"Mine!" said Jimmy. "You hit me in the stomach with your dumb wrench!"

"Sorry! _Patrick, did you step on my tail again?!"_

Clank appeared next to his partner. "That was me, Ratchet. I apologize."

"Ratchet! Get your stupid tail outta my face!" Spike complained as he tried to get out from under SpongeBob.

"That's not me!"

"Sorry about that!" Tails said. "Hey, who's got my other tail?!"

"_Patrick, you doodle-head!"_ the Lombax yelled at the starfish. "The fox's tail isn't a chew toy!"

As you might've guessed, Patrick had the tail in his mouth. Ratchet grabbed the starfish and pulled him away from Tails, but he just made Patrick more determined. "Must…have…ice cream!" he said, and he tackled Tails.

"Help! Murder! Police!" Tails cried as he wrestled with Patrick.

Ratchet came to the rescue and clubbed Patrick with his Omniwrench numerous times, and the starfish finally let go of Tails. But then Patrick tried to eat the wrench, and he and the Lombax wrestled some more on the floor.

Clank, because of his small size, managed to escape the fight and made it to the front door. But since he was so short, he had to jump onto the doorknob to turn it. The door swung open, and two figures stood on the porch: Timmy and Tommy Nook.

"Good morning!" the robot said after he had hopped off the doorknob.

"Hello there!" Tommy greeted back.

Remembering that someone was at the door, the rest of the group untangled themselves and stood up.

"You're Tom Nook's kids, right? You came to take us to your shop?" Sonic asked. The twins nodded their heads.

Spike stepped up and asked, "One question, Nooklings: which one's which?"

Timmy pointed at himself. "I'm Timmy!"

"Timmy!" Tommy echoed.

His brother glared at him. "No, _I'm _Timmy!"

"Timmy!"

"Stop that!"

"That!"

Spike held up his hands and told them, "I've got it! I've got it!"

The twins shot one last glare at each other before Tommy turned to the gang and said, "Anyway, are you guys ready to go to Nookington's?"

Ratchet had been holding Patrick away from the door, but now the starfish escaped his grip. He went up to the Nooklings and asked with a dumb grin, "What's a Nookington's?"

Ratchet and Spike glared at Patrick, and the twins looked at Sonic in puzzlement. Don't mind him," said the hedgehog. "He doesn't have any marbles."

"I love marbles!" Patrick exclaimed, and then Ratchet clunked him over the head with his wrench.

Sonic then returned to the coons' question. "We're not quite ready to go; we haven't had any breakfast yet. Would ya mind waiting?"

Timmy shrugged and grinned. "Not at all!"

Sonic let them inside the house, and the heroes ate breakfast while the twins played NES games in the game room. When they were done, the group of ten left the house, with Sonic locking the front door.

As they were walking through the forest, Patrick turned to SpongeBob with a goofy grin. "Hey SpongeBob, who owns Nookington's?" he asked.

"Tom Nook does, Patrick," SpongeBob replied.

**3 seconds later…**

"Hey SpongeBob, who owns Nookington's?"

"Tom Nook does, Patrick."

**3 seconds later…**

"Hey SpongeBob, who owns Nookington's?"

"Tom Nook does, Patrick."

**3 seconds later…**

"Hey SpongeBob…"

Ratchet had had enough of Patrick's stupidity. _"It's Tom Nook, you idiot!"_ he shouted in his face.

Unfazed, the starfish greeted him, "Oh! Hi, Hatchet!"

"_It's __**Ratchet**__, you moron!"_

"Ratchet owns Nookington's!"

"_**Aaaarrrggghhh!!" **_

Luckily for poor Ratchet, Tom's shop was only a short walk away, and, because it was two stories, it was easy to spot. When all ten of them stepped inside, Tom greeted them. "Welcome, my friends! This is my store, Nookington's!"

"Hi, Daddy!" Timmy said.

Patrick pointed his thumb at Ratchet and told the raccoon, "Ratchet says he owns the place." Tom gave Ratchet a puzzled look, and the Lombax simply pointed at Patrick and made a "crazy" face. The shopkeeper just shrugged.

"Anyway, why'd ya bring us here?" Sonic asked him.

"Oh yes, that's right," Tom stammered. "Well, Tortimer and I need to find out who is loyal to the Animal Alliance and who isn't. But ever since those robots moved in, nobody will talk about the Alliance because they're afraid of being arrested. That's where you come in. I need you to go undercover as my new employees and earn the trust of the animals. You must somehow get them to tell you their feelings about the Allies and Big Boss. Is that OK with all of you?"

Sonic gave him a thumbs-up. "Works for me!"

"No problem here!" Ratchet replied.

"I'm all for it!" Spike put in.

SpongeBob, who was happy to have a job, cried, "I'm ready to please!"

Tom clapped his hands. "Excellent! Then let's get started by preparing for the opening of the store. Ratchet, Clank and Tails, you can check the cash register and tell me how much money is inside it. Spike, Jimmy, SpongeBob, and Sonic, can you help my sons set out the items for sale?"

Patrick was excited by the work, and he jumped up while clapping his hands. "What do I do?! _What do I do?!" _he asked over and over.

"Patrick," Nook said, and then he hesitated, trying to think of a job he could do. "Err…just…stand there until I need you, I guess."

"OK!" The starfish stood as still as stone and stared out into space with a blank look.

Freaked out by his behavior, Tom Nook said, "Uhh…Patrick?"

Silence.

"_Patrick?"_

No answer.

"_Patrick!"_

For the third time, Patrick didn't respond. Ratchet told the coon, "Ignore 'The Brain', Nook. He's a few fish short of a school." He moved one finger in a circle on one side of his head—the "crazy" gesture.

Suddenly a very angry Tortimer rushed into the shop and bowled Patrick over; even though he was as flat as a pancake, Patrick _still _didn't move! The old tortoise was quite a contrast; he was storming about with his cane in one hand and a piece of paper in the other.

"It happened agin! I can't _believe_ it happened agin!" he roared furiously.

"_What _happened?!" Tom asked in bewilderment.

"Somebody got arrested is what happened! To make thangs worse, it was _Pelly an' Pete from the Post Office! That sneaky, hare-brained, low-lyin', good-fer-nuthin' __**skunk **__of a robot captain hauled 'em away ten minutes ago!_ It just _had_ to be them, didn't it?! Now who's gonna run the Post Office?!"

"Phyllis can take over for a while; it's no big deal."

"She quit when the others were arrested, Tom."

The shopkeeper's eyes bugged out of his head. _"What?!_ Then how can I mail my letters to the villagers?!"

The gang had overheard Tortimer and Tom, and Sonic suddenly got an idea. "How did they mail the letters?" he asked the mayor.

"It's really easy," Tortimer replied. "Ya just give Pelly or Phyllis yer mail, and they send it off as soon as they can. They can send a maximum of ten letters. …Err, why do ya ask?"

"I was just wondering…do you think _we _could run the Post Office?"

"You fellers?!"

"But those errands…" objected Nook.

Luckily, Sonic had a way to get around that problem. "Not all of us would do it," he explained to them. "If three animals could do it, so can three of us. I could deliver the letters."

Clank set down the Bells he had been counting and said, "Sonic's plan is quite clever. Perhaps Ratchet and I could work at the counter." His Lombax partner shrugged and nodded in agreement.

"And then the rest of us are left with the store errands," Tails said, quickly catching on.

Tortimer smiled. "Sounds like a plan to me. I won't make you fellers run that place all day, though. Y'all can quit as soon as I hire replacements."

Tom was also pleased with the arrangement. "All right then! Since I'll be short three people, I guess my boys will have to set up the shop by themselves. I have many packages I'll need the remaining five of you to deliver; Alliance work has really backed up my shipments, you see. Timmy and Tommy, can you please go get the delivery bag?"

The Nooklings saluted and said in unison, "Yes, sir!" They rushed over to the cash register and took out a _huge _sack.

"It's a bit much, but I think you can handle it," said Nook as the twins pulled the bag to the gang's feet. "The items have tags on them that tell who is supposed to get it and what the item is. I'll send each of you out to meet the townsfolk and deliver their items to them."

At the mention of meeting other villagers, Tails began to shift uncomfortably, and Ratchet and Clank saw it.

"Wait a second, Nookmeister," the Lombax put in. "I think Tails should work inside your shop."

"Why is that?"

Clank replied, "If my assumptions are correct, Tails has been a subject of ridicule because of his second tail." He glanced at the fox, who nodded sheepishly. "If he meets the citizens of this burg, there is always the possibility that at least one will criticize him as well. There is a lesser chance of such an event if he remains here and assists your sons."

The coon rubbed his chin. "You have a point. All right then; he can help Timmy and Tommy with readying the store."

Tails turned to Ratchet and Spike and said gratefully, "Thanks, guys. You really read my mind." Then Timmy and Tommy took his hands and led him away to the shop's basement, which is where they stored their items.

Tom divided the big sack of delivery items in half and handed Spike and Jimmy each a small sack and a map. "The names and locations of the inhabitants are on the maps. Don't dilly-dally, and remember to find out what people think of the Allies. Oh, and one more thing: it may be best if all eight of you kept your names a secret; make up some false names."

Jimmy eagerly said, "OK! Let's go, Spike!"

"What about us?!" piped up SpongeBob, who didn't want to be left out.

Spike grabbed Jimmy's sleeve. "Jimmy, we're going to split up. Take one of the sea creatures with you."

The boy sighed in disappointment. "Okay. I'll take NerdyPants."

SpongeBob skipped in place and shouted, "I'm ready!" He followed Jimmy out the door on their mission.

"I guess I have to take 'The Brain'," Spike said, groaning inwardly. He walked up to Patrick, who was still lying on the floor motionless, and brought the starfish to his feet. "Come on, moron."

"What's a moron?" Patrick asked.

Spike's face reddened in anger, and he kicked Patrick out the door. Sonic, Ratchet, and Clank followed him out, and then they parted to go to the Post Office.


	10. Chapter 9: A Hero's Work is Never Done

Chapter #9: A Hero's Work is Never Done

As soon as Sonic, Ratchet, and Clank stepped inside the Post Office, they realized that their task wasn't going to be as easy as they had thought. The place had been ransacked. The mayor's desk had been thoroughly searched, the office's clock had fallen off its hook above the counter, and white feathers were everywhere_._

Sonic whistled at the disaster. "Boy, it looks like a tornado went through this place."

Ratchet gritted his teeth and said, "Did those buckets of bolts _have _to make a big mess of the place?"

"Never mind that, Ratchet," Clank butted in. "Shall we clean up?"

Clank assigned himself the job of cleaning up Tortimer's desk, while Ratchet fixed the clock. As Sonic was sweeping up the feathers, he peeked into one of Pete's mailbags and pulled out ten letters.

"Let's see…two letters for Apollo, three for Rasher, two for Pudge, and three for Dotty."

"Do you know how to reach those inhabitants?" Clank asked.

The hedgehog studied the map he had gotten from Tom Nook. After a minute of mumbling to himself, he replied, "It's easy. Rasher lives on the other side of the river, so he'll be my first stop. My second delivery will be to Apollo, and then I'll zoom over to Dotty's place. Finally, I'll dump the last letters with Pudge and run back. No big deal!"

"Can you provide an approximation of the allotted time this mail run would require?"

He scratched his head and replied, "How 'bout five minutes?"

"Sounds a little slow for you, hedgehog," Ratchet teased.

"I added the villager factor."

"The what?"

"It's likely that some of 'em will talk to me, and I'll lose time," Sonic explained. Then, with a final cry of _"Adios!"_, Sonic sped out the door, with the ten letters tucked in a mail carrier's pouch.

Ratchet walked behind the counter and picked out ten more letters for Sonic. As he looked through them, he saw that there were more letters for Pudge and Apollo. "Why did he take just ten?" he said. "He looks strong enough to carry this whole sack."

"Perhaps he wishes to take a tour of the town before he seriously starts delivering letters," Clank suggested.

"Good point. Oh well. He can take twenty more when he gets back." Ratchet took out all of the other bags, and the duo settled down and began sorting through the mail.

* * *

"For the _gazillionth_ time, SpongeBob, _no!_ You _cannot_ carry the sack!"

"Aw, come on, Jimmy! I'll be careful! _Pleeeeaaase?!"_

Just before Jimmy lost his temper and grabbed his Stun Club to whack the yellow sponge, they arrived at Daisy's house; according to Jimmy's list, Daisy had ordered a red sofa. SpongeBob eagerly raced up to the house and knocked on the door.

A white dog answered. "Hello?"

"_Hi! I'm SpongeBob SquarePants!" _SpongeBob yelled in her face, unable to contain himself. With a terrified scream, the dog slammed the door in his face.

"SpongeBob, you scared her!" Jimmy scolded him. "Here, hold the sack and let me talk to her."

The silly sponge hopped up and down, happy that he had finally gotten a chance to hold the sack. "Ohboyohboyohboyohboy…" he said over and over.

Rolling his eyes, Jimmy knocked on the door and called out, "Does someone named Daisy live here? I need to talk with her."

The dog cautiously opened the door slightly and peeked out at the strange boy. "M-my name is D-daisy," she stammered, taking a glance at the other visitor. "Who are you?" she asked Jimmy.

Jimmy opened his mouth to reply, but then he remembered that he had to keep his real name a secret. "My name's…uhhh…"

"What's the matter? Did you forget your name?"

"N-no, it's Timothy. I'm working for Tom Nook. Sorry about my partner, Spon…I mean, Bobby."

SpongeBob stopped clowning around and objected to his alias. "My name's not Bobby! I'm Sponge…"

Jimmy put his right hand over the sponge's mouth before he could say anymore. "He's a bit nuts in the head," he tried to explain with a nervous smile.

Daisy wasn't fully convinced, but she didn't push it. "Oh. Well, pleased to meet you both, bow-WOW. What's in the bag?"

"Items we're delivering for Tom Nook. Did ya order a red sofa?"

"Yes I did, bow-WOW! It's finally here! Thank you so much!"

As Jimmy was handing her the item, he remembered what their real reason for delivering the items was. He came up with an idea. "No problem!" he said casually. "Sorry if it took a while to come in! With all the fighting and the Animal Alliance…"

Daisy's eyes grew big. "The _Animal Alliance?_ Wow! You've heard news of them?!"

"So you like those guys?"

"Oh yes, of course I do, bow-WOW! All the girls in town are rootin' for 'em! They're our heroes!"

"How many girls are there?"

The dog counted on her paws before answering, "Seven: Mallary, Dotty, Savannah, Whitney, Olivia, Kiki, and me!"

"Thanks for the info! I'll go check them out! We've got to see them anyway; Savannah ordered a lovely armoire from Tom. See ya!" Jimmy took the sack from SpongeBob, and they ran away from the acre to find the three girl animals that lived by the Museum.

* * *

Unlike his younger cousin, Spike wasn't having as much good luck with the villagers. Patrick kept smacking into trees and saying "Oops, sorry about that." When they had finally found three houses by the Museum, they found out that all of the villagers were out for a walk…all except prissy, vain Olivia. She complained about her package being late, and she decided to thank them by sending them on an errand to give "stupid" Pudge his "stupid" Game Boy back. And then Patrick picked the perfect time to act like the moron he was.

"This is my way of saying 'thank you', sweetie," Olivia purred to Patrick. "Go ahead and take this Game Boy to Pudge."

"Do what now?" Patrick asked her.

The cat became slightly annoyed. "Take this Game Boy to Pudge."

"Sorry, what was that?"

Olivia glared and hissed angrily, _"Game Boy. Pudge." _

"Huh?"

"_Take this stupid game to the beach where that amnesiac of a bear lives!" _she screeched.

But Patrick only grinned and said, "Duuuuuuuhh…"

Olivia finally blew her top. **"Aaaaaaaarrrgghh!!**_** Get over here, boy, and talk some sense into your idiotic friend!!"**_

Spike had been munching on an apple he had picked from a nearby tree. He shrugged and replied, "Sorry, kitty, but I can't help you with him. He's so stupid that he doesn't know the difference between a person and a tree!"

They heard a thumping noise, and they turned to see Patrick running into the tree next to Olivia's house.

Boom.

"Oops, sorry about that," he said.

BOOM.

"Oops, sorry about that."

_Boom._

"Oops, sorry about that."

_BOOM._

"Excuse me, sir."

**Boom.**

"Pardon me, ma'am."

**BOOM.**

"Can I please get through?"

_**Boom.**_

"I said move it!"

_**BOOM.**_

Finally Patrick had had enough. He backed up a few steps and ran at the tree, roaring, _"Move!!"_

_**CRAAAASH!!**_

Patrick fell onto his back and lay there in the grass with his eyes closed tight and his tongue sticking out. When Olivia and Spike rushed to the scene, the cat asked, "Is he dead?"

"I wish," Spike muttered in reply.

Suddenly, the starfish opened his eyes, gave a goofy grin, and began laughing uncontrollably. _"Hahahahahahaha!! _That was fun! I wanna do it again!"

"Oh no you don't!" said Spike. He grabbed Patrick by the back of his neck and began dragging him to the next acre. He halted when something hard hit Spike in the head. He turned around and picked up a GBA.

"Deliver that while you're at it, Jake, since 'Peanut Brain' couldn't do it in a million years!" Olivia told him.

"I love peanuts!" Patrick exclaimed.

"Jake" nodded and walked away from Olivia's house with "Peanut Brain" in tow. The moron was _still_ laughing hysterically. "As soon as we're outta sight of Ms. Vanity, I'm gonna knock your lights out with my Stun Club and dump you in the river," Spike whispered threateningly to Patrick.

"I thought we were gonna deliver that Game Boy to Pudge," Pat shot back.

"Why you little…"

"Sorry, I don't know Vietnamese."

Spike sighed. "Will I _ever_ win?!"

* * *

While their friends had been running errands in the village, Ratchet and Clank had sorted through all of the mail in the Post Office, both in the letterboxes and in the mail sacks.

"Whew! We're all done!" said Ratchet. "Now we just need to wait for Sonic to get back. What's keepin' 'im?"

"The inhabitant factor must be more important than I first calculated," Clank said. When Ratchet gave him a confused look, he changed his sentence. "The villagers must be more talkative than I thought."

Just then Sonic burst through the door. He smiled and stared at the clock. "Right on time! Five minutes!"

"And 45 seconds," Ratchet added with a smirk.

"Hey, I can't help it if Mallary talks a mile a minute! I also had to do a favor for Apollo; I had to get his organizer from Rolf! So, whaddya got for my second round?"

Using his photographic memory, Clank listed the letters that were in the sack he sat next to. "In this sack we have two letters for Apollo, three letters for Olivia, two for Buck, one for…"

Sonic held up his hands. "Okay, okay, I got it. I'll take twenty with me, now that I've got my bearings."

"Did ya see any soldiers patrolling around out there?" Ratchet asked.

"No, but I did see the robot police dragging that cat Rover into the police station. He had handcuffs on, so I guess they were arresting him." Sonic had a puzzled look on his face when he said this.

"What is the matter with that, besides the fact that Rover is a fellow Ally?" asked Clank.

"I told Copper, and he said that there's no jail inside the police station." Ratchet's eyebrows rose in surprise, and Clank's eyes glowed brighter.

"That certainly is peculiar…" the robot said.

The hedgehog nodded. "Somethin' fishy is goin' on, guys."

While they were talking, the door opened and a voice spoke.

"Somebody say fish? I love fish."

Who was the voice? …I'll give you three guesses.

Patrick?

Nope, guess again.

SpongeBob?

Nope, guess again.

_Chip?_

Wrong!

Sonic, Ratchet, and Clank turned around and saw their visitor. It was none other than _Wendell_, the travelling (and hungry) carpet seller!

"You said you had a fish," Wendell said. "I'll give you wallpaper if you give it to me!"

"I am sorry, sir, but Son…" Clank started to say, but Sonic clamped a hand over Clank's mouth (if you can call it a mouth.)

"Tom told us to make up fake names, remember? Call me Cobalt." (A/N: "Cobalt" is a type of blue color.)

"Pardon me." The robot turned back to Wendell and explained, _"Cobalt _said that something was _fishy_, meaning _strange_ or _unusual."_

Unfortunately, the walrus didn't get it. "You have a fish too?! _Yummy!"_

"Oh great, _**another**__ genius…"_ Ratchet muttered sarcastically.

Losing his patience, Wendell cried out, _"Gimme the fishies!!"_ Then he lunged forward and grabbed Clank.

Upon seeing his friend in trouble, Ratchet jumped out from behind the counter and took out his Omniwrench. Before the walrus could lumber out the door, he threw his Omniwrench in a boomerang fashion, and the wrench tripped Wendell. He landed with a loud thud. Sonic rushed forward and snatched the startled robot out of his paws.

"That was close!" Clank exclaimed. "Thank you, Ratch…I mean, eer…_Sarge."_

Ratchet rose an eyebrow. "Sarge?"

"You _are_ a sergeant in the Galactic Rangers."

Sonic whistled, impressed by the Lombax's rank. "That's neat. Good job with the wrench, _Sarge."_

Used to his new name, Ratchet twirled the Omniwrench. "Thanks, _Cobalt,_" he said with a teasing smile.

"_Waaaaahh!! Why won't you gimme da fishies?!" _wailed Wendell.

Ratchet had had enough with idiotic people that day. "Oh, shut up, tubby," he shot back. "If you're not mailing letters, then leave."

"I don't mail letters 'cause I can't stick fishies in 'em."

"Then why did you come in here in the first place?!"

"I like talking with Pete and Pelly. _Now_ will you gimme the fishies?!"

"For the last time, we don't have any! You've worn out your welcome here, so leave."

When Wendell refused to leave, Ratchet and Sonic dragged him out of the Post Office, and Sonic braced the door to prevent him from getting back in. Once he was gone, the trio relaxed and began to prepare Sonic's next delivery.

"Good riddance to that idiot," Ratchet said. _"One _doofus is enough to deal with."

Once again, the door opening and a voice startled them. "What's a doofus?"

The Lombax groaned. "Oh no.Not _him_."

"Him," said a second voice.

The second speaker was Spike, and you can guess who the first was.

"Ice cream! Alpacas! Ketchup!"

"Patrick!" Ratchet said with gritted teeth.

That's right. Patrick.

"You guys got all of your errands done?" Sonic asked Spike.

"Naw, just half of 'em," he replied.

"That was pretty fast. How'd ya do it with the moron?"

"It was a nightmare until I knocked him out with my Stun Club and left him in the dump."

Once again, the door opened, and there were _more_ voices.

"You did _what_?!"

"Way to go, cuz."

Obviously, it was SpongeBob and Jimmy. The boy told the others, "We got half of our work done, too. It's only noon and I'm already beat! Will we ever get a break?!"

"What's a break?" Patrick asked. Surprisingly, he was ignored.

Sonic turned to Jimmy and said, "I've learned somethin' about bein' a hero, Jimmy: _a hero's work is never done."_

Spike chuckled. "I've learned something similar to that: a _Monkey Catcher's _work is never done!"

"Do ya think we can check on Tails and ask Mr. Nook for a break?" SpongeBob asked.

At that moment, Tom, Tails, and Tortimer entered the Post Office. "No need for that. We came to check on _you,"_ said the raccoon.

Tortimer asked Sonic, Ratchet, and Clank, "How's the mail job, fellers?"

Sonic shrugged and said, "It's not half bad." The galactic duo nodded in agreement.

"Good." Then he turned to the delivery group. "How 'bout you four? Figgered out who's on our side yet?"

"Yeah, we have," Spike replied. "Most of the girls are rooting for the Allies. Olivia is the only one who doesn't. The boys were a little harder to figure out, but I think the whole town is against Big Boss."

"That's the best news I've heard in a while," Tom said happily. "Anyway, did I hear someone ask for a noon break?"

Jimmy stepped up and answered uneasily, "Heh heh, that was me. Am I in trouble?"

Nook chuckled. "No, of course not! I was just coming to tell you that you can all take a break for an hour. This is the hottest part of the day, so it would be best for all of us to take a little nap. Then we can get back to work."

"Sounds good to me. I need to catch a few Z's," Spike said, yawning for emphasis.

"I second that," said Sonic. "The mail business can be tiring for even a supersonic hedgehog."

"An hour of R&R," Ratchet said as he tucked his wrench in his pocket, "and then I'm back in action."

"You guys never stop working, do you?" SpongeBob asked them, a bit puzzled.

"What's work?" Patrick piped up, but once again no one seemed to hear him.

Ratchet shrugged and responded, "It's like Sonic said: 'A hero's work is never done'."

"Well then, if you need anything, I'll be in my shop," Tom Nook said, and he walked back to Nookington's with Tortimer.

Everyone left the Post Office, and the eight heroes walked back to their house, each duo returning to its assigned floor for a nap. Sonic was the only exception; he slept and sunned himself at the same time on the roof. They all tried to rest and conserve energy for the chores ahead. After all, _a hero's work is never done._


	11. Chapter 10: The Secret Police

Chapter #10: The Secret Police

Tails was the first one to wake up from his nap. When he looked at his watch, he realized that he still had 15 minutes of his break left. The fox decided to check on his plane, the _Tornado_, which he had landed outside the town gate. He got up and left a note on his bed so the others wouldn't worry. Then he quietly crept out of the house and away into the forest.

_I'll just check on it and see if it's OK, _he thought. _It was there last night. I just hope nobody hauled it off._ When he crossed the bridge and walked into the clearing where he had parked the biplane, he discovered that his worst fears had come true.

_The _Tornado_ was gone!_

"Aw, man," Tails groaned. "I _knew _I shouldn't have left it out here!"

He ran over to where the plane had been and discovered two sets of tire tracks that didn't belong to the plane. They led to the fence bordering the train tracks. The fox's eyes widened when he saw that a portion of the fence had been sawed off…big enough for a huge tow truck to go through. He started to follow the tracks when he noticed a strange footprint by the tire marks. He placed one foot in it; it was almost twice as big. What kind of animal had made that print? With these clues cemented in his mind, Tails ran back to the house. He intentionally slammed the front door with a loud bang.

For the second time that day, Spike and Jimmy leaped out of their beds, startled by the noise. When he saw Tails, Spike groaned. "Did we fall for a prank again?!" he asked.

"I'm not playing a prank on you!" Tails told them. "I need everybody to wake up! My plane's been stolen!"

A few minutes later, everyone was outside in the clearing, examining the scene of the crime. Tails showed Sonic, Spike and Ratchet the mysterious footprint he had found.

"What creature could make a print that big?" wondered Spike with a scratch of his head.

"Well, because of the tire tracks," Ratchet deducted, "we can rule out every animal that can carry a plane, like Snagglebeasts."

"Snaggle_whats?!" _Jimmy yelped.

"Ratchet, this is not the Solana Galaxy," Clank pointed out.

The Lombax held his hands up in apology. "Sorry, I was just thinkin'."

As he bent down and studied the footprint, Sonic said, "Well, I know one thing for sure…"

Everybody turned to him.

The hedgehog stood up with a playful smirk. "It can't be Bigfoot. He doesn't wear shoes."

Everybody groaned at the bad joke. "Sonic, get serious," Spike told him. "Don't you wanna find that plane?"

"Of course! I was just making a joke."

While the others were talking, Clank was studying the print. He suddenly got an idea. "I believe _I_ know whose footprint this could be," he said.

Everybody turned to him. "It had better not be Bigfoot," said Spike.

"I assure you, it is not. From the size, shape, and mold of the print, I have been able to deduct a hypothesis."

Jimmy was totally confused. "A hypotha-what?"

"_Hypothesis,"_ Tails pronounced the word for them. "An explanation for certain observations. It's a scientific term."

"Wow, and I thought _Clank_ was a walking dictionary," Ratchet exclaimed.

"So what is your…uh…hypotha-thing?" Spike asked Clank.

"It is not someone, but some_thing _that made this print," replied the robot. "I believe a _robot_ to be the prime suspect."

Sonic slapped his forehead; that answer had been right under their noses! "Duh! _Robots_ hauled the _Tornado!_ It makes sense to me!"

"That means Big Boss probably has it now," Jimmy pointed out.

Tails' face turned white, and he gulped. "Uh oh. That means he could find out that we're here helping the animals." Then he shook his head. "This is all my fault."

Ratchet placed a hand on the fox's shoulder. "We're not angry about it, so don't kick yourself."

"Don't worry, Tails, we'll find the plane," Sonic said with a smile. Instantly Tails cheered up; his best friend had a way of lifting someone's spirits when they were low.

SpongeBob and Patrick had been quiet for some time now, partially due to the fact that the starfish had knocked himself out by ramming into more trees. But SpongeBob got an idea and said to them, "Why don't we go find Tortimer and Tom Nook? Maybe they can help us!"

"For the first time, SpongeNerd has a good idea!" Ratchet exclaimed.

The yellow sponge folded his arms, a frown on his face. "My name is Sponge_Bob_, not Sponge_Nerd_!" he complained.

Jimmy looked at his cousin's watch. "It's time for us to get back to work anyway. Let's go!" He darted off for Nookington's, with the others following behind.

When the eight heroes reached the shop, they only found the Nooklings playing NES games in their bedroom. They told them that their father was going to the Museum for some kind of meeting. Timmy and Tommy joined them in their search, and they raced to the stone building. Sonic, of course, was in the lead, so he got a glimpse of the museum's entrance first. He quickly screeched to a halt, and the others bumped into him.

"_Ow!_ What did ya do _that _for?!" yelled Spike, who had rammed right into Sonic's quills (ouch!).

The hedgehog put a finger to his lips. _"Shhhh!_ Something's going on over there," he whispered. "I saw robots guarding the entrance."

SpongeBob became afraid at the mention of robots. He stammered, "Y-you don't th-think they c-c-caught the others, d-do you?"

Sonic shook his head, worry etched onto his face. "I dunno…but I think I know a way to find out." He pointed to a tall tree that stood next to one of the museum's windows. The limbs reached high enough for someone to peek into the window. "One of us has gotta climb that tree and peek inside."

"Let me do it!" Jimmy volunteered, and ran to the tree. But when he tried climbing it, he found it impossible; the trunk wasn't right for it, and there weren't any lower branches to serve as handholds or footholds. He slid right back down and muttered, "Rats."

"Here, I can make it up!" Tails suddenly said. He backed up a few steps and began to twirl his tails rapidly in circles. They soon acted like the rotor blades on a helicopter and lifted him off the ground. The fox was able to steer himself onto one of the tree's highest, strongest limbs, and he sat down on it and peered into the window.

The others (minus Sonic) stared in shock as he did this, and Clank said, "An unusual ability…but useful."

Ratchet gave a low whistle. "Not bad for a little guy."

Sonic grinned, proud of his buddy. "Yup, and he's only eight."

Spike's eyes widened, and his jaw dropped. _"Eight?!" _he shouted. Jimmy quickly shushed him.

Ignoring the noise the others made, Tails silently watched the scene in the insect section of the museum. What he saw shocked him, and he reported it to his friends. "Tortimer and Nook are with Blathers. But some robots have got Copper and Booker in cuffs!"

"In cuffs?!" SpongeBob said, his face pale.

Spike groaned, "They've been found out."

Ratchet pulled his Dual Vipers out of their holsters and cocked them. "We've gotta help them!" he said, and he ran toward the entrance.

Sonic stopped Ratchet before he rounded the corner. "No!" he said, pinning the Lombax to the stone wall. "If we charge in there, they'll get us too!"

"Sonic is right, Ratchet," Clank said to his partner. "It would be best to remain here and think through the correct course of action."

Reluctantly, Ratchet lowered his weapons. "Okay then," he mumbled, casting a glance toward the entrance of the museum.

Tails called down to them in a low voice, "The robots are leading the dogs out of the room. They must be leaving!"

The gang flattened themselves against the wall and sidestepped toward the corner close to the entrance. Sonic, who was closest, halted them once more and peeked around the corner, watching the entrance. Moments later, six robots emerged from the building, with their captives in the middle of them, guarded on all sides. Each robot was dark gray and almost twice Sonic's height, with a dangerous blaster mounted on one of their arms. On their heads where eyes would be there was a tube with a moving laser inside. In long strides they went towards the gang, and the eight flattened harder to avoid detection. Not noticing them at all, the eight robots marched away to the police station.

Sonic was considering chasing after them when Tortimer, Tom Nook, and Blathers appeared. Chase became impossible, because Timmy and Tommy, who had been silent throughout the adventure, rushed out toward their father, calling for him loud enough for the robots to detect it. "Daddy! You're OK!" Timmy cried.

Nook embraced them, a puzzled look on his face. "Timmy and Tommy? What are you two doing here? I told you to stay home this time." Then he spotted the heroes walking toward them. "Oh. They came with you. What brings you here?"

"My plane was stolen," Tails replied. "Clank says that robots probably took it."

"Oh dear," said Blathers. "Porter told me that the robots cut down part of the town's fence to haul an unidentified biplane to their base in Tombstone. My apologies, Tails. We didn't realize it was yours until it was too late."

"We'll try to get it back for ya," Tortimer added.

Sonic asked Tortimer, "What was with those robots arresting Copper and Booker? Were they found out?"

The mayor sighed. "I'm guessin' you boys were watchin' the show. Yep, Copper and Booker were found out. I dunno how, but they got caught. May luck be with them, 'cause they're gonna need it."

"But what bothers me," Blathers said, "is that those weren't the usual robots."

Spike's eyebrows rose. "They weren't? Then who were they?"

The owl looked down at his feet (err, talons). "I…I'm afraid I don't know for sure."

Then a voice startled them. "I do." Everyone turned around and saw a white dog with a guitar under one arm, leaning against the Museum wall.

"K.K. Slider!" Tortimer cried in surprise. "What are ya doin' here?"

K.K. replied, "I came to warn you, but it looks like I'm too late. They've already bagged themselves Copper an' Booker, I see."

"You mean the robots?" Ratchet asked.

He nodded. "I heard they were coming here, and that they knew whom two of our agents were."

"Who…scratch that…_what _are they?"

Slider looked around at the forest nervously. "Not out here. It's safer to tell inside."

Everyone ducked inside the Museum and went into the secret basement. Once they were all seated, K.K began.

"_They _are the Animal Crossing Secret Police, or ACSP for short. They were created by Big Boss and programmed to hunt down anyone labeled as a 'threat to the peace'."

Ratchet quickly caught on. "Spies and terrorists."

"In other words, _us,"_ Tortimer added grimly.

"Exactly right," said K.K. "They've gone through every town under Big Boss's reign and turned them upside down, capturing Allies the whole way. Most of our guys positioned in those towns are either classified as missing-in-action or captured-in-action."

"And now Copper and Booker are part of the latter," Tom said angrily.

Jimmy asked, "Can't we do anything to help them?"

K.K. shook his head sadly. "There's nuthin' we can do, kid. Nobody has any idea where they're taken."

Sonic became confused. "I saw them take Rover into the police station."

"That's the mysterious thing about 'em. I've checked all the police stations, and the prisoners_ are never there._ They just…_vanished."_

Tortimer's eyes widened; this information was new to him. _"Vanished?!"_

"Then we just have to hope that they can escape without our help," Nook said with a resigned tone of voice.

Slider sighed. "Sorry, Nookmeister, but that ain't gonna happen either. Once you're caught by the ACSP, you're never gonna escape from them. Even if you do, they'll shoot you rather than take you back." Many of the group shivered at the idea. The dog nodded his head in agreement to their thoughts.

"May I inquire on how you acquired this information?" Clank asked.

Slider cocked his head—a dog's way of showing confusion. "What was that, little dude?"

"He's wondering how you found out about the ACSP," Tails explained to K.K.

"Oh. It was simple: I just sneaked into a secret meeting of robots and learned about how they were sending in the Secret Police to get rid of the Animal Alliance. Some hooded guy in black was leading them; I couldn't get a look at his face. I think he's the Police Chief. Stay away from him at all costs; some of my troops say that anyone who sees the face of the Secret Police Chief is captured and never comes back."

Spike shuddered. "Don't worry, we will."

The talk about the Secret Police Chief reminded Blathers of something. "This isn't the first time we've heard of the Secret Police," he told his friends and the heroes. "There have been reports of this person and the robots that took Copper and Booker. We've just never been able to prove their existence for sure."

"Anything else we should know?" Tortimer asked K.K.

"Yup, one other thing. Before The Boss sends in the Police, he appoints one of his spies to seek out the identities of some of our agents. He sent _Mr. Resetti_ into AnimaCity."

"Resetti, eh?"

Blathers wasn't surprised. "Hmph. I knew to never trust that sorry excuse for a mole. Insectivores are so untrustworthy!"

Someone cleared his throat, taking offense at the comment. "Ahem!"

Blathers realized that someone had been offended and immediately rephrased his words. "Some of them can be, that is. You certainly aren't like that, Sonic."

The hedgehog grinned. "Thanks, Blathers."

Tortimer turned to the hero gang and said, "Well, fellers, it looks like I've got a new job for you."

"You want us to find Mr. Resetti," Ratchet guessed.

"Ya got it, Lombax. Keep yer eyes peeled for that scoundrel and capture 'im if ya can! Lemme know when you've got some info on 'im or when you have 'im."

Sonic stood up and saluted smartly. "Aye aye, Tortimer! We're on it!"

Jimmy also leaped up from his seat. "Let's do it!" he cried with a fist in the air.

"Yippee!" SpongeBob exclaimed eagerly.

Patrick yelled, "Cheesecake!", which earned glares from Ratchet and Spike and annoyed, deadpan looks from everyone else.

And so began the heroes' second mission…


	12. Chapter 11: Resetti

Chapter #11: Resetti

Even after the sun sank into the west, leaving the world in darkness, the eight heroes saw no sign of the mole Resetti. When the town hall clock chimed 9:00, they retreated to their house for the night in defeat, with Ratchet vowing they would find their target the next day. They each went to their assigned floors and fell into a deep sleep.

But at around eleven o' clock, Sonic was awakened by a loud knocking noise. He crawled to the edge of the roof and stared into the darkness. A shadowy figure was knocking at their door. Actually, it was more like banging.

_Bang bang!_

"I wonder who that is, and what he wants at this time of night," the hedgehog muttered to himself.

He climbed back into the house through an open window and tiptoed past SpongeBob and Patrick (who were once again talking in their sleep). He found Ratchet, Clank, and Tails in the living room, groggy and irritated at being disturbed, especially Ratchet. Sonic couldn't help but stare at the N90 Hurricane in the Lombax's hands.

"Who's makin' all that racket?" Ratchet said angrily. "If he doesn't knock it off soon…" he cocked the assault rifle, "things will get ugly. I hate it when my sleep's disturbed."

"Ratchet, calm down," said Clank. "There is no need for violence." But his partner ignored him.

Tails rubbed his eyes. "I've gotta admit, that's getting annoying. I wonder if the others heard it."

Three loud knocks later, Spike and Jimmy were up as well, armed to the teeth with their Stun Clubs. It took six extra-loud knocks to wake up SpongeBob and Patrick…well, SpongeBob anyway. When Patrick came to the top of the stairs, he was actually sleepwalking!

"I'll get it," the starfish mumbled to no one in particular. But since he was wet from his tub, he slipped and tumbled down the stairs, landing on SpongeBob. When the strange visitor knocked again, he lifted his head and asked sleepily, "Who's there?" Everyone else quieted him with a "Shhhh!"

Spike opened the door, and they saw a mole dressed in a miner's outfit. He looked pretty ticked. "Well, it's about time!" the insectivore snapped. "I've been waitin' at your door for _five_ minutes!"

"What do you want? It's eleven at night!" Spike shot back.

The mole squinted at Spike and then backed up a step. "Hold it! You're not the kid I'm lookin' for! He lives at this house!"

"_Lived_ at this house. My friends and I live here now. Who are you anyway?"

"_You don't know who I am?! _Well, ya should! Mr. Resetti's my name, bein' mean is my game!"

Tails immediately perked up. "Mr. Resetti!" he whispered to the others.

Everyone realized that their loud-mouthed visitor was the one they had been looking for, and they instantly became cautious. All except for Ratchet and Patrick, that is. Ratchet was too upset about being disturbed to care, and Patrick, well…

"Who's Mr. Resetti?" the starfish asked.

"_**I **__am, dipstick!" _Resetti screamed.

"No you're not! You're Mr. Rogers!"

"Patrick, shush!" SpongeBob told his friend. He covered Patrick's mouth, but the damage had been done. Resetti was furious.

"_**Mr. Rogers?**__ That __**does**__ it! I'm gonna take you downtown!"_

Clank became suspicious. "Are you the chief of the law enforcement in this settlement?"

"_**No!**_ Of course not! If I was, I would've sent someone else to do this job for me!"

Sonic held up his hands and exclaimed, "Alright, we got the point, so quit shouting! Why did ya come here, anyway?"

Resetti glared at the hedgehog and replied angrily, "That's none of yer beeswax, pin cushion!"

Ratchet, who hadn't said anything, suddenly lost his temper and pointed his rifle at Resetti. _"Quit yelling or I'll blow your head off!" _

"_I can yell all I want!" _the mole shot back. _"Also, you're not supposed to have any weapons! Give that gun to me!"_

The Lombax stepped back, gripping his rifle tighter. _"No! It's __**mine!"**_

Clank said desperately, "Rat…err…Sarge, calm down!"

Resetti grinned at the nickname. "Listen to the trash can, _Sarge_, and _gimme yer gun!!"_

At the nickname of "trash can", Clank's eyes narrowed and glowed red. Slowly his head turned around to face Resetti. "What…did…you…call…_me?"_

All eyes turned to the angry little robot; even Ratchet stared at him. Everyone except Resetti instantly became afraid of Clank. "Uh oh. That did it," Spike said.

"Mr. Resetti, if I were you, I'd take that back," Jimmy warned him with wide eyes.

The mole just laughed. "No way! In fact, I'll say it again!"

Ratchet's eyes bugged out of his head, and he waved his hands frantically. "Resetti, _no!"_ But it was too late.

"Pipsqueak, you're nuthin' but a _trash can!" _

Clank glared at him for five seconds, and then he folded his arms, legs, and head into his body.

Sonic became uneasy. "Ratchet, what's going on?" he asked. The Lombax only gulped in reply.

"Nuthin', that's what's goin' on!" laughed Resetti. "He hid himself! He's nuthin' but a chicken! Just a chick—"

Clank's voice from inside his body interrupted him. _"Self-destruct in __**ten**__ seconds."_

Resetti gaped. _"What the…?"_

The heroes' eyes grew wide. That is, everybody's but Patrick's. Instead he put on a goofy face and shouted, _"Yay! Fireworks!"_

As Clank counted down, chaos ensued. SpongeBob ran in circles, Tails shouted for everyone to find cover, Sonic told them to run, and Patrick laughed like the moron he was. Finally Spike told the gang to take cover in the house, and he shut the door behind them. Ratchet yelled for them to brace themselves, and they covered their ears. However, Resetti didn't try to take cover; he was too shocked to even speak. As the countdown ticked off the final five seconds, the mole managed to say, "Uh…oh…"

_**KABOOOOOOM!!**_

The explosion was loud and broke the windows of the house, but it wasn't big. The heroes didn't move for a few seconds, but then they checked themselves; no one had been harmed. Finally, Ratchet poked his head out the door; he whistled at the sight before them. The others came out and surveyed the scene.

There was a black hole where Clank had been, and Resetti was covered with the same black dirt. He stared at them with wide eyes. He coughed and squeaked, "Mommy…" before falling over.

"_Happy birthday!" _Patrick said happily.

"What _was_ that, Ratchet?" asked Sonic.

"Clank's self-destruct function," the Lombax replied. "I programmed it into him about a week ago. I made it so that if Clank found himself in a bad situation, he could activate it anytime he wanted. I knew he had activated it because of the red eyes."

Tails asked, "Where is he now?"

"All over the acre, no doubt," Spike muttered as he stared at the small black crater.

SpongeBob sniffed. "Poor little guy."

"Don't cry about it," Ratchet said. "Watch."

They suddenly noticed that Clank's head, torso, limbs, and other scattered pieces began to move back toward the crater, where they reassembled themselves. A few minutes later, the robot was back to normal. (A/N: I saw it in an animated movie,_ The Iron Giant_; handy! But Clank doesn't really do this, as far as I know, heh heh…)

"That was…actually fun. Hehehehehe," said the robot. Then he turned to his companion and said with a mischievous grin, "You should start listening to me more, Ratchet." Ratchet chuckled uneasily in reply.

"Hey, guys, what are we gonna do with Resetti?" Jimmy asked, gesturing toward the mole with his Stun Club.

Upon hearing his name, Resetti sat up with a groan and stared at them. "I'll answer that: you're doin' nuthin' with me! I'm getting' outta here an' reportin' all of you to the robots! And I'll bring my brother Racketti to get you, alien freak!"

Ratchet's eyes grew wide; Resetti was annoying enough, but he hated to think of what his _brother_ was like! _"He has a brother?!"_ he cried. He turned to Clank and said, _"Quick, load my Shock Blaster!"_

In turn, Resetti was afraid to know what Ratchet's Shock Blaster was and what it could do. _"Your_ _**what?! **_That does it; I'm outta here!"

But before he could escape, Spike and Jimmy jumped him with their Stun Clubs armed, both saying in unison, "Oh, no you're not!" The two cousins clubbed Resetti over the head several times, and he easily went down. Once they were sure that he was unconscious, Sonic sent Tails and SpongeBob into the house for some rope.

Ratchet smiled and rubbed his hands gleefully like a mad scientist. "Looks like we've got ourselves a hostage, boys," he said with a grin.

Sonic warned him with a glare for emphasis, "Don't even think about knocking him around with your weapons, Ratchet; we need him alive and unharmed."

"Please? Just an teensy weensy bit?" pleaded the Lombax.

"_No!"_

He folded his arms and pouted. "Fine. But if he refuses to talk, let me know, and I'll fix him for ya."

* * *

A few minutes later on the second floor of the heroes' house, the gang had tied Resetti to a ranch armchair. The mole had regained consciousness, and he yelled insults at them. Sonic and Spike had to restrain Ratchet a few times before Resetti realized what danger he was getting himself into. After that he shut up, squirming and glaring silently in his seat.

While the gang was talking about what questions they were going to ask their captive, SpongeBob paced in front of him. He demanded to him in a low, dramatic tone, "Alright, Resetti, _spill it! _Tell us everything you know!_ Who is Big Boss?! _What are his plans? Who are his spies?"

Spike turned around from the hero group's huddle and asked, "SpongeBob, what are you doing?"

The sea creature replied with a smile and a shrug, "I'm just trying to make this more exciting!"

Resetti rolled his eyes. "Oh brother."

Sonic stepped out of the huddle and said, "Never mind him, Spike. Let's just question Resetti for real."

"Okay." The Monkey Catcher turned to Resetti. "First off, what errand were you running for Big Boss? Don't keep your mouth shut, 'cause that would be a mistake."

"Whatever happened to the right to be silent?" the mole muttered in reply. Ratchet, who was standing behind the chair, whacked him with his Omniwrench. _"Ow!_ Okay, okay! I came here to arrest the kid that lived here! Happy?!"

Sonic shook his head. "Nope. What did the kid do wrong?"

"The Secret Police Chief found out he was with the Animal Alliance."

"How did he find out?" Jimmy asked, eager to be part of the interrogation.

"That's none o' yer…" Resetti began. But Ratchet's wrench made contact with his head again. _"Ow!_ Fine! He interrogated the Able Sisters!"

"The Able Sisters? Who are they?" said Sonic.

"Seamstresses. They owned a tailor's shop by the beach before they were arrested. I'm surprised that you don't know 'em, pin cushion. I thought that you might be a cousin o' theirs."

Spike scratched his chin. "So they're hedgehogs, huh? Well, if you know that the Able Sisters are captive, then you must know whom else Big Boss has prisoner. Tell us…please."

At first, the mole growled angrily in defiance, but the sight of trigger-happy Ratchet raising his wrench changed his mind. "Alright, alright, I'll talk! Just don't sic that alien freak on me! The ACSP in AnimaCity has Rover, Chip, Joan, Jingle, Pelly, Pete, Blanca, Copper, Booker, and Wendell."

"Wendell?!" Ratchet exclaimed. "He's so stupid that he could _never _be an agent! Why'd ya arrest _him?"_

Resetti shrugged. "Good point."

Spike whispered to Sonic in a worried voice, "That's a lot of agents. Where in the world could they hide that many people?!"

"I think I know how we can find out," the hedgehog said. "Just follow my lead." He turned to Resetti and told him, "I'm surprised you managed to catch that many agents, Resetti. I'm even more impressed by the way you keep them hidden."

Spike quickly caught on to the flattery, and he added with fake exasperation, "We've seen the 'bots take them into the police stations, but we never see them again! We can't ever find them!"

Resetti couldn't help but brag about that fact, and that's just what Sonic wanted. _"Ha!_ That's 'cause you _morons_ never thought to look inside the _lockers!_ The back walls are actually the doors to secret bases under the police stations! Even if you _did _find a door, you would need a password to get in the base! No enemy agent would _ever _guess it: _'Evil shall rule!' _It's the biggest secret of the ACSP!"

Ratchet grinned. "It's not so secret anymore, 'cause you just told us, rocks for brains!"

(A/N: You know, 'cause he's a mole, and he mines…never mind, it was a dumb pun…)

The realization that he had been tricked struck Resetti, and he glared angrily at Sonic and yelled, _"Hey! Why you little…" _

The blue hero smirked. "Thanks for the info, Resetti. I guess the old saying 'There's more than one way to skin a cat' is pretty true after all."

"_I'll get you for that, you rat!"_ He earned a whack on the head from Ratchet in return.

"Unfortunately for you, we're not done yet. Who else knows about this secret? In other words, tell us the names of other ACSP spies like yourself."

Resetti quickly realized that he was just making things worse on himself by refusing to talk. If he told them everything they wanted to know, maybe that weird alien would quick hitting him so much. With a "Hmph", he began his reply.

"There are just five of us: my brother Racketti scouts the territory like me, Gracie the fashion designer is cooperating with Big Boss, Phyllis sneaks us names of Allies, and Crazy Redd arrests suspected Rebels."

Spike frowned. "Didn't Phyllis work at the Post Office?"

Sonic nodded grimly and added, "She probably turned in the other two, Pete and Pelly."

"But Timmy and Tommy told me that Phyllis and Pelly are sisters," Tails interjected. "Would a sister really do that?"

The others shrugged, and Ratchet replied, "I hate to say it, but it's not impossible."

With a sigh, Sonic turned back to Resetti. "The last but not least question, Resetti: _who is suspected of being an Ally?"_

"You expect me to know everybody on the lists?" he asked with a sneer.

Ratchet held up his wrench threateningly and replied, "Not everyone, just the ones you know for sure."

"…Fine. Here's the list: Tortimer, Tom Nook an' his brats, Blathers, Porter, Saharah, K.K. Slider, Kapp'n, Gulliver, and some wimp named Sonic."

Everyone froze and stared at the mole. "Did you say…_Sonic?"_ asked Ratchet.

"Of course I did! Phyllis told me 'bout the guy the yesterday, and I made a report to the Secret Police Chief. But I said that it's just a buncha baloney. Supersonic hedgehogs, _ha!_ What's next, _flying foxes?"_

"Err…" Tails stammered, and quickly hid his second tail from view.

"Has the report reached Big Boss yet?" Spike asked, concern written all over his face. If the Secret Police and Big Boss knew about Sonic, then surely they knew about the rest of the gang. That would mean danger for all of them.

"Nah, I doubt it," replied Resetti with a small wave of his paw. "The Chief won't bother The Boss with some silly story 'bout a hedgehog that can break the sound barrier by running."

Sonic himself was a bit concerned about the enemy's awareness of his presence. "But will the Secret Police be looking for him?"

"_What is it with you and Sonic?! He doesn't exist!"_

"Then explain why he's staring you in the face," said the hedgehog with a smirk.

"Wha…" Resetti studied his interrogator, trying to remember Phyllis's description of the so-called supersonic hedgehog. He realized that he matched the supposedly fictional hero. _"It __**is **__you!" _he cried angrily and squirmed some more. "As soon as I get outta here, hedgehog, you and yer pals are dead meat! I'll spread the word about you and your buddies! You might be able to run fast, but you can't hide from The Boss's Secret Police!"

Spike folded his arms. "Which is why we're not gonna let you go."

"_What?!"_

"We don't want you to tell your friends all about us," said Ratchet.

Resetti erupted into a tirade of threats. "You just wait, traitors! _They __**will **__find me!!_ And when they do, you'll regret the day you were born! You'll be tortured endlessly! The Boss will make sure that your deaths are all slow! _All hail Big Boss!!"_

"All right, that's enough!" Ratchet exclaimed, and he clubbed Resetti. The mole lost consciousness again, and Tails and Jimmy tied him tighter and gagged him with a washrag. "I didn't mind his threats," the Lombax said, "but when he started declaring Big Boss supreme ruler…_blech!"_ The others nodded, and Jimmy made a gagging noise.

"I don't get it. How can ya use a bad guy to measure stuff?" piped up Patrick.

Jimmy slapped his forehead. "Oh brother."

"SpongeBob and I aren't brothers!"

"Can it, Patrick," growled Ratchet.

"Sorry, I don't speak English."

Spike muttered, "Oh, that's right. You speak Dorkinese."

The starfish heard a part of what he said. "What's that? Did you call yourself an idiot?"

"Why you little…"

"I told you I don't speak Spanish!"

Again Ratchet lost his temper with Pat and pointed his Annihilator at him. _"Shut up, Patrick!!"_

Patrick stared wide-eyed down the barrel of the weapon; he knew better than to say another word. _"Finally!" _said Spike.

Tails groaned and rubbed his forehead like he had a headache. "Do we have to go through this _again?"_

Sonic was just as annoyed. "Guys, let's just ignore Peanut Brain and try to make use of Resetti's information."

The starfish brightened. "Peanuts? I love peanuts!"

Spike glared at Patrick one last time before returning to the subject. "I just hope the info was worth kidnapping Resetti for."

"Trust me, guys, I think it was worth it. After all, he _did_ tell us where the ACSP has taken Copper and Booker," Sonic pointed out. "Now we can sneak into the police station and rescue them!"

Ratchet quickly warmed up to the idea. He exchanged his Annihilator for his N90 Hurricane and said, "Sounds like we're storming a secret base! Count me in!"

Just then Jimmy noticed something stuck in Resetti's left pocket. He pulled it out. "Hey, guys, look! Resetti had a note on him! It's some kind of message to the Secret Police Chief!"

"What does it say?" asked Tails.

The boy read aloud to them, his eyes growing wider as he read. "Arrest suspected Rebels Tom Nook and Mayor Tortimer tonight. Both suspects are believed to be in AnimaCity. Signed: Big Boss."

SpongeBob's eyes grew big as well. "Wow. A letter from the bad guy himself!"

"Oh no," moaned Tails. "They're gonna arrest Tortimer and Nook!" Then his eyes widened with horror. "And maybe even Timmy and Tommy."

Ratchet cocked his rifle, a look of anger on his face. "No twisted police chief is gonna hurt innocent kids if _I've _got somethin' to say about it!" The others nodded their heads, thinking mutual thoughts.

Sonic rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Well, it looks like we've got two jobs ahead of us. We need to warn Tom and the mayor and rescue the ACSP prisoners. We can do both by splitting up."

"But we can't just leave Resetti here!" SpongeBob protested. "What if he escapes?"

"Or turns our lights off?" Patrick added with a grin.

Many of the gang glared at the starfish, but Spike stuck with the subject. "SpongeNerd has a point. We need someone to guard Resetti while the others do the other jobs."

SpongeBob raised his hand. "Patrick and I could do it!"

"No way!" Jimmy said. "You'd tear down the house!"

"Jimmy, let's give these guys a chance," Spike told his cousin.

The boy seemed uncertain, but complied. "Okay."

Sonic nodded his head in agreement. "Now that that's settled, who's gonna to find Tom, who's gonna warn Tortimer, and who's going on the jailbreak mission? I think Tails and I should search for Tortimer. My speed might make a difference."

"Jimmy and I can go find the Nooks and warn them," Spike volunteered.

"Clank and I will go rescue the POWs," Ratchet put in.

"You sure you two can do it alone?" asked the hedgehog, a bit hesitant.

The Lombax commando smiled recklessly. "Sonic, I've got an arsenal of weapons with me! And you can't forget Clank's self-destruct feature. We'll be fine!"

His confidence persuaded the self-appointed leader, and he exclaimed, "Then it's settled! Let's do it, gang!"

Ratchet grinned, slung his N90 over his shoulder, picked up his Dual Vipers, and cocked them with a wild grin.

"_It's time to go commando."_


	13. Chapter 12: Taking Action

Chapter #12: Taking Action

In AnimaCity, everything was silent. There was no wind blowing, and no lights were on, by the order of the occupying robots. Nothing stirred outdoors or in the villagers' homes. That is, until the door of the heroes' house creaked open. Opening the door enough so they could slip out, six of the heroes—Sonic and Tails, Spike and Jimmy, and Ratchet and Clank—tiptoed out of the house. Just as they shut the door, they heard fast footsteps. They whirled around and saw K.K. Slider. The dog stopped in front of them and put his paws on his knees to rest. He had a worried look on his face.

"K.K. Slider? What're you doin' here?" Sonic asked, bewildered by the sight of him.

The panting dog explained, "I'm glad that I…found you dudes. I just got word that…the village police is goin' to…search the Museum for…any Alliance equipment."

"That secret basement is hidden pretty well. I don't think they'll find it," Ratchet said with a shrug. "If we couldn't spot it, then they can't."

Slider shook his head. "You can never be too careful in this business, Ratchet. If they find anything, they'll take Blathers away, and he's really important, ya know."

"I hate to add to your worry, K.K.," Sonic butted in, "but that search must be some kinda distraction for you, 'cause the ACSP is gonna arrest Tom and Tortimer tonight."

He groaned. "Oh great! And those 'bots are coming in half an hour! I can't hide the stuff _and_ warn Nookmeister and the mayor!"

"_We _can help. Why don't Tails and I go look for Tom and Tortimer?"

Spike caught on to the hedgehog's plan. "Yeah! And Jimmy and I can help you smuggle the equipment out!"

"What about Ratchet and Clank?" K.K. asked with a glance at them.

Clank replied, "Ratchet and I will be occupied infiltrating the hidden base of the Secret Police."

"You're gonna rescue Copper and Booker?! You guys are nuts! They'll catch you!"

With the same grin he had given Sonic moments earlier, Ratchet said, "They'll hafta work hard to nab _me!"_

He shrugged. "Okay, I'll trust you, but don't say I didn't warn ya. Anyway, I appreciate your help, Spike and Jimmy. Meet me at the Museum in the aquarium section!" He turned to Sonic. "Good luck finding Tortimer and the Nookmeister, hedgehog. Try Tom at his store. If he isn't there, he's probably with the mayor. They like to talk at the Wishing Well when there aren't any 'bots hangin' around. See ya, dudes! …And try not to be seen."

The dog ran away, and the six returned inside to tell SpongeBob and Patrick their new plan. (Thankfully, Patrick was silent and caused no delay in the explanation.) Now Spike and Jimmy would smuggle Animal Alliance gear out of the Museum. The rest of the plan remained the same; Sonic and Tails would go look for Tortimer and Tom Nook, and Ratchet and Clank would bust out the captive Allies. With that settled, the heroes marched out of the house again and crept away in pairs into the night on their missions.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, in the heroes' house, while they were waiting for their friends to return, SpongeBob and Patrick played board games they had found in the game room. They were working on Monopoly, and SpongeBob rolled the dice. _"Yes!_ I can purchase Broadway! Hand me a hotel, Patrick."

"Mmm…tastes like chicken. Try one, SpongeBob."

The sponge stared at his best friend in horror. _"Patrick! You're not supposed to __**eat**__ those!"_

The starfish burped, and a hotel came out of his mouth. "S'cuse me," he mumbled.

SpongeBob shrugged. "Oh well, so much for that game. Let's check on Resetti."

The pair walked upstairs to the crowded second floor. They found the mole still tightly tied to his chair, fast asleep. The sea creatures couldn't help but giggle at the sound of his snoring.

Suddenly SpongeBob picked up the sound of the door opening.

"Someone's back! C'mon, Pat!"

"Alpacas!"

SpongeBob and Patrick raced downstairs; that was their first mistake. Their second was calling out to their visitors.

"_Hello down there! We're coming!"_

"_Merry Christmas!"_

Their third error was screaming at the sight of a squad of _robots_ in the house.

"_Aayyyeeeeeee!"_

"_Pancakes!"_

Their fourth mistake was running back up the staircase to hide. "After them," droned one robot, and the squad followed them onto the second floor. They turned the lights on and scanned the room. Luckily, SpongeBob and Patrick had hidden under a bed, out of sight. The robots didn't bother looking for them; they only wanted Resetti.

The robot that had spoken turned to the rest and ordered in its monotone, "Fetch the Chief. Tell him that we have recovered our missing agent." With a clicking of its heels and a salute, another marched downstairs.

There was silence for a few moments. Then a small figure cloaked in black stepped into the room. No matter how hard SpongeBob tried to get a better look at him, he couldn't see his face. But he didn't need to; the person's voice was scary enough.

"Excellent work, Officer #309. Wake him up."

Resetti's gag was taken out and he was untied, and the robot called Officer #309 shook him awake. He woke up with a snort. "Eh, what?" he mumbled drowsily. Then he came to his senses and stared at the cloaked figure. "Chief! Am I glad to see you! Did ya get those punks that tied me up?"

"No one is here except for two strange sea creatures," was the ominous reply.

SpongeBob gasped and whispered to himself, "The Secret Police Chief!"

Patrick thought he was talking to him, and he cried loudly, "Is he Mr. Rogers?!"

Unfortunately, everyone in the room heard Patrick. Officer #309 went over to the bed and lifted up the blanket, revealing the hidden duo under it. The robot picked them up. "Those are two of 'em!" Resetti yelled, pointing an accusing finger at the pair.

SpongeBob whimpered and shivered; he could feel the eyes of the mysterious Chief on him. "Please don't hurt us!" he wailed.

Curling his lip (which the sea creatures couldn't see), the Chief ordered Officer #309, "Leave these two here. The Boss won't have any use for them." The soldier dropped SpongeBob and Patrick obediently.

"_What?! _Chief, they could have useful information!" Resetti protested.

"What information would a pair of clowns have for me—the location of the circus?" he replied scornfully. "I'll tie them up and leave a warning note to their friends, but nothing more."

"But…"

He lost his patience and raised his hand as if to strike the mole. "Silence!"

Resetti winced and backed away, submitting to his superior's wishes. But as he walked down the stairs, he mumbled under his breath. The Chief and Officer #309 tied up SpongeBob and Patrick with tight, thick cords and gagged them with washcloths, and the squad went back down the stairs and left the house, leaving the two terrified sea creatures in the dark of their own home.

* * *

Sonic and Tails had been searching everywhere for Tortimer and Tom Nook. They weren't in the store or the Post Office. The only place left was the Wishing Well. By the time they got there, even Sonic was panting heavily. But they were in luck; both the mayor and Nook were there; Timmy and Tommy were also present.

"Well, I'll be! If it isn't Sonic and Tails!" exclaimed Nook.

"Hello, Sonic! Hello, Tails!" Tommy cried with a wave.

"Sonic! Tails!" his brother said as the twins hugged the fox's and the hedgehog's legs. Sonic grinned and patted the head of the young raccoon attached to him.

Tortimer walked over to them. "Good evenin' to you fellers! Whatcha doin' out here at this time o' night?"

After getting his second wind, Sonic replied, "We came here to warn you."

"You need to come to our house right away!" Tails said, worry plainly written on his face.

Tom Nook's smile vanished. "Warn us? About what?"

The blue hero began to explain. "We caught Resetti, and—"

"Really?!" interrupted Tortimer. "That was fast! I thought it would take weeks to catch 'im!"

"Yeah, but we found out the ACSP are going to arrest you tonight!" Tails blurted without thinking about the Nooklings.

Tom's eyes grew wide. _"What?! _But how…?!"

"Shh! Daddy! Not so loud! Robots might hear us!" Tommy said, and he and his sibling clung to their heroes a bit tighter in fright.

Sonic continued, "We also found out where the police are holding all of your friends, and Ratchet and Clank have gone to rescue them."

Nook shook his head. "That's suicide!"

Tortimer had to disagree. "Not if you have the weapons Ratchet does."

"That's true…"

Sonic quickly grew impatient. "We can't just sit here and talk! The Police are looking for you!"

They suddenly heard footsteps and voices. The group ducked into some bushes close by the Wishing Well and waited for them to pass. A squad of robots marched into the acre, and they were led by a figure dressed in black with a hood over his face. To Sonic and Tails' surprise, Resetti was next to him, yelling angrily.

"And one of 'em kept hittin' me with his stupid garage tool! Can you believe that, Chief?! If I ever see that weirdo again, I'm gonna…"

"Keep your voice down, mole, or shut up altogether," hissed the cloaked person. "I'm not here to listen to your yelling and complaining."

"That guy must be the Secret Police Chief!" whispered Tails.

"Yeah, but how did Resetti escape?" Sonic wondered aloud.

"All right, all right, I'll turn my voice down!" Resetti said, his tone a bit lower. "Anyways, remember that report Phyllis gave me the other day? The one about that strange blue hedgehog?"

The hooded figure nodded, not sure where the mole was going with it. "Yes…"

"Turns out she wasn't lyin'. That Sonic guy was one of the punks that kidnapped me! He admitted who he was, that cocky little rat!"

"Are you sure it was him?"

"I'd bet you a million Bells on it if I had them!"

Tortimer and Nook glared at Sonic, who gave a nervous smile.

"You think he's a threat?" The Chief seemed to believe Resetti.

The mole shrugged. "Yeah, he's got some brains. He seemed to lead his buddies, and he tricked me into squeakin' about our hideout." He hadn't meant to say that last part, but it was too late to take it back.

"You did _what?!"_ It was obvious that the Chief was furious.

"He tricked me, I tell you! It's not _my_ fault!"

"_You idiot! _Now they can find us! I'll have to call headquarters and warn them to prepare for an assault!"

As he reached into his cape and pulled out what appeared to be a walkie-talkie, the squad of robots disappeared into the trees. The animals waited for a few more seconds before creeping out of their hiding place.

Sonic immediately began apologizing for his smart-aleck act with Resetti. "Sorry about blowing our cover. I made a pretty stupid move."

"We've forgiven you already, Sonic," Nook told him with a wave of his hand. "But please, try to be more careful!"

Tortimer noticed that Tails appeared to be worried, so he asked, "What's the matter, son? Somethin' wrong?"

The fox nodded. "Very wrong. SpongeBob and Patrick were supposed to be guarding Resetti, but the robots rescued him. What happened to them? They weren't with the robots. I hope they're okay."

"We'd better go check on them!" Sonic said urgently. Tortimer and Nook agreed, and they raced for the hero gang's house.


	14. Chapter 13: Ratchet & Clank Go Commando

Chapter #13: Ratchet & Clank Go Commando

Ratchet and Clank were hidden in some bushes only yards away from the cylinder-shaped Police Station. The building was quiet; it was the perfect time for a night raid, and they weren't going to wait any longer. Ratchet cocked his N90 Hurricane, and Clank climbed into the backpack on his back. The Lombax then rushed out of the bushes in a silent but quick sprint to the back of the station. When he was well hidden in the shadows, he stopped to take a deep breath. Then he leaned as close to the wall as he dared; he didn't want to crush Clank. He crouched and sidestepped to the edge of the gaping doorway, and then carefully peeked into the station. The only light on was a small lamp on the place's only desk. No one was inside.

"All clear," the commando whispered to his companion. "Now let's find that secret door."

The locker stood in one corner of the room and looked normal. Ratchet opened the door and pushed on the back wall. It gave way and revealed a dark passage. He snapped his fingers. "Drat, I don't have a flashlight."

"Ratchet, we must not dawdle. Time is of the essence," Clank said. His partner nodded; they could do without a flashlight.

The Lombax walked inside the locker and into the dark passage. He was careful to close the back wall so no one would know of his entry into the secret base. The duo continued until they reached another door, and Ratchet rapped on it several times. There was the sound of shuffling, and a peephole near the top of the door opened. A pair of red, robotic eyes stared at them. A monotone voice droned, "Password."

Ratchet replied casually, "Evil shall rule."

"Access granted." The door opened, and Ratchet stepped through the opening. He turned to look at the doorkeeper, who had his back turned to them, and then pulled out his Annihilator and fired off a shot.

**BOOM!!**

Whatever pieces of the robot that weren't destroyed by Ratchet's weapon scattered and disappeared into the darkness. Satisfied, Ratchet blew away the smoke emitting from the Annihilator's barrel. Then he spat at one of the pieces and muttered, "Evil shall rule, my foot."

Clank, however, wasn't so pleased. "You should not have done that, Ratchet. Someone could have heard the noise."

"Relax, Clank. There's more where _that_ came from."

The two continued on down the tunnel in silence. Ratchet finally stopped when he saw a light further ahead. He pulled out a glove from his weapons pack and put it on his left hand. Then he pressed a button on the glove with his right hand, and a capsule popped out of a container on the glove into his left hand. He tossed the capsule onto the ground, and a small robot with a camera attached to its back came out of the capsule. Clank quickly recognized the tiny gizmo.

"Are you sure you should use an Agent of Doom, Ratchet?" he asked with worry.

"Don't worry, buddy," the Lombax assured him. "I've equipped 'em with self-destruct devices and replaced their turrets with surveillance cams. They're for recon instead of combat."

Ratchet pulled a remote out of his backpack and directed the Agent of Doom toward the light. As he sent the little robot on its mission, he watched the green screen on the remote; it showed him what the Agent's camera was seeing.

The light grew brighter on the screen as the Agent drew closer to the end of the tunnel. The screen became white for a few seconds, and then the picture finally materialized into an image of a room. Office cubicles, benches, and tables were scattered throughout the cavern, and tall, tough-looking robots with heavy navy-blue armor (the regular police) and a few Secret Police robots were patrolling about. There was another door at the back of the room, straight across from the first; the problem was that there were lots of obstacles in the way.

_That door might lead to a jail, _Ratchet thought.

He guided the little Agent carefully under the tables, chairs, and desks, past the guards, and to the door. Just as the recon robot reached it, a guard opened it, and the Agent slipped past it into another tunnel. But this one was larger than the main tunnel, and iron bars lined the walls. Ratchet suddenly realized that those were jail cells, and he turned the Agent's head with the remote to examine each one. He caught a glimpse of a blue uniform in one cell and focused on it. The cell's prisoners were Copper and Booker!

"_Bingo," _he said to Clank with a triumphant smile.

The Agent crawled in between the iron bars into the cell toward the two dogs. Booker saw it, yelped, and jumped onto his bed. Copper glared at him and snapped, "Oh what are _you_ whimperin' about?"

The bulldog shivered and whimpered, "Those eyes! Those _horrible, yellow_ _eyes!_ Take 'em away! _Take them away!"_

"Did you see a rat _again?"_

Booker vigorously shook his head and pointed at the Agent. Copper stared at it in wonder. "What in the world…"

Ratchet pressed a red button, and the Agent's mouth popped open. Copper jumped back a few steps. The Lombax held down the red button and whispered into a small speaker on the remote. "Calm down, Copper. It's Ratchet and Clank. We're here to help you."

"You shrank yourselves and came to us in a little robot?" Booker asked, a bit confused.

The commando slapped his forehead. "No, no, no. I'm speaking to you guys through a walkie-talkie I put into this recon Agent of Doom. Keep your voices down! Copper, how many people are in there?"

"Ten: Booker and me, the Able Sisters, Blathers, Jingle, Chip, Rover, Blanca, and Wendell. Are you thinkin' of tryin' to bust us out? It's not gonna work. It's you against 20 robot guards."

"Don't underestimate Clank and me, Copper. I've brought my weapons with me. Clank and I are a two-man army. The only thing we need is a diversion."

Ever heard of the verse "Ask and you shall receive"?

Right on cue, a loud crash rocked the jail. Ratchet swiveled the Agent's head around to see what was happening. The jail cell door at the very back of the room had been knocked down, and the cell's prisoner was running down the hall and screaming.

It was _Wendell!_

"_No! You can't take me back!"_ he screamed._ "I won't go back! Nooooooooo!" _

"Oh great," Copper muttered.

"Perfect timing!" Ratchet exclaimed. "I'm on my way, Copper. Oh, and step away from the Agent. It's gonna self-destruct."

"_It's gonna __**what?!" **_

The screen turned red and blacked out; the Agent had exploded. Ratchet stood up, took off his glove, and armed himself with his N90 Hurricane. Clank climbed onto Ratchet's back again, and the Lombax ducked into a shadowy corner of the tunnel. He did it just in time. A purple blur whizzed past him, and twenty robot guards followed it. When they were gone, Ratchet stepped out of the corner and shook his head in amazement. "I never thought Wendell could run that fast. He could beat Sonic at that rate!"

"Do not worry about him, Ratchet," said Clank. "I have calculated that, at that rate of speed, Wendell will outrun the guards. We can pick him up later."

"Alright. Now let's bust the others out!"

Ratchet ran down the tunnel, through the main cavern, and into the jail room. He grabbed a ring of keys that were hanging on a nail above the jailer's desk. As he unlocked Copper and Booker's cell, he noticed that Copper's face was covered with black dirt, with the dog tapping his right foot angrily.

"What happened to _you?" _asked the Lombax.

"Your Agent of Doom blew up in my face!" he yelled angrily.

He chuckled. "I warned you to get away from it, didn't I?"

Copper growled and muttered, but he quickly forgave Ratchet, and they let out the other animals, each of them expressing their gratitude. Copper had to yell to get them to be quiet and let their rescuer explain where they were going. Then, with Ratchet and Clank in the lead, the party of animals made their way through the tunnels to the base's secret entrance in the locker. Luckily, Wendell had bashed through the locker's back wall, so they only had to open the locker's door. Just as the Lombax was about to do so, he heard robotic voices. He held up his hand, and the animals halted and became silent. Then Ratchet carefully peeked through the locker's opening. One guard, the Robot Captain, had just picked up its walkie-talkie and activated it.

"This is ACSP Captain #405. Identify your number and…"

The person on the other end shouted, "Cut that protocol junk, Captain; this is your Chief speaking."

_The Secret Police Chief? _thought Ratchet.

The Captain changed its tone slightly to one of respect and obedience and even stood at attention as though the Chief was in front of it. "Affirmative, Chief!"

"Whatever. How is HQ?"

"One of our prisoners, Wendell, has escaped, sir."

"_What?! _Your unit will be sent to the recycling plant for this failure!"

"But sir, he has been evaluated as no threat. He knows nothing about our plans, especially not tonight's operation."

"Hmph, then perhaps I will spare you. But your subordinates won't be so lucky. Anyway, I was calling to warn you that an assault might be attempted on HQ; according to information from an agent, the Rebels have discovered where we hide our prisoners. Be on your guard. Is there anything else you would like to report?"

"Two reports, sir. One of the suspected Rebels, Kapp'n, has been seen shipping boxes of items to the heavily protected Paradisa Isle."

"He must've heard about our plans to check the Museum. Did you see any of the equipment?"

"Yes. The boxes contained documents and weapons, believed to be Alliance weapons."

"So Boss was right: the Rebels _do _have a base here. What was the other report?"

"Capture Squads Beta and Delta were dispatched to arrest the suspected leaders Tom Nook and Tortimer, but they were not in their homes. The buildings were locked up, and it appeared that they were abandoned."

"They must've heard we were on to them, and they may have plans to warn the their friends! There is only one thing we can do now: we must begin Operation Apocalypse _tonight!"_

Ratchet didn't know what "Operation Apocalypse" was, but he had a feeling it was some kind of diabolical plan. And, from the response of the captain, a dangerous one, too.

"But sir, innocent civilians are on the premises! Big Boss gave the instruction that…"

"I _know _what he ordered, Captain! And I'm giving you new orders! Lock down the base and stay there. I will contact you when the bombing is over."

Ratchet's eyes went wide, and he gulped. _A bombing?! This can't be good…_

The Robot Captain hesitated before replying, "Affirmative, sir. What of your status?"

"I will arrive shortly. Keep the doors open until I get there."

"And what of your search for Agent #017?"

"If you must know, it was a success. We discovered him inside one of the storekeeper's houses. Two idiotic-looking sea creatures were guarding him. They were no trouble."

Again Ratchet became afraid. _They found Resetti?! I hope SpongeBob and Patrick are okay. …What am I thinking?!_

The Chief summed up his conversation. "Follow my orders and I just may forgive you of your failure. Chief out."

The Captain's radio clicked and shut off, and the Captain ordered to its units, "Operation Apocalypse has been moved to tonight. Retreat to the main bunker and await further instructions."

Ratchet barely had time to think about what the Chief had said, because the robots were turning to head back into the locker. He quickly pulled out a bazooka-like missile launcher that was much heavier than his Annihilator. He turned to the animals and said to them, "Go back into the tunnel, _now! _Things are gonna get ugly!" Copper and the other Allies quickly obeyed; the weapon and the gleam in Ratchet's eyes gave them the chills.

Ratchet loaded his weapon and said with an evil smile, "'Bots, it's time to '_R_ip _Y_a a _N_ew _O_ne'."

Clank eyes widened. "Ratchet, I do not think you should use the _R.Y.N.O.!_ It is dangerous!"

"None of my other weapons can quickly take out _twenty_ guards at once! Brace yourself!"

The robot nodded and ducked his head into his body. "Here we go…" he mumbled from inside.

Ratchet kicked the locker door down and held the R.Y.N.O. in front of him. The robots stared at him in shock. _"Surprise!" _he whooped. And then he pulled the R.Y.N.O.'s trigger.

**Bang!! Kaboom!! Crash!!**

Silence followed the deafening ruckus. Inside the tunnel, Copper and the other fighters wondered if Ratchet and Clank had been killed in action. They breathed a sigh of relief when Ratchet's voice called out to them, "It's okay, guys! You can come out!"

When they stepped out of the locker, their mouths fell open. The room looked like an atomic bomb had exploded inside it. Black dirt was all over the walls, and there were impressions of robot guards in the dirt. The robots themselves were nowhere to be seen.

"Where are all the guards?" Rover asked while glancing around as though one would jump on him.

Ratchet smiled and replied, "All over the room. You can see some of their parts."

The whole group gaped. "Wow," said Rover.

"Ratchet, let's go to the jetty," Copper suggested to him. "Kapp'n can take the others to our island base! They'll be safe there!"

"_Paradisa?!_ I've always wanted to go there!" Joan the turnip seller cried happily.

"Well, what are we waitin' for?!" Ratchet said. "Let's go!"

Ratchet took back his place as leader of the fugitives and led them out of the Police Station. They trotted towards the jetty, but they halted when they heard the sound of moaning.

"Where is it coming from?" asked Clank.

Booker scratched his head. "Behind us, I think…"

Ratchet said, "Copper, come with me. The rest of you, go now and leave for Paradisa."

Obediently the group turned and ran for the jetty. Ratchet, Clank, and Copper continued creeping toward the moaning noise. Now they saw where it was coming from: a thicket surrounded by trees. Ratchet stepped up to the hiding place and pushed away some of the bushes. A huge form was lying in the grass. Copper gasped.

It was _Wendell!_

"Wendell! Are you OK?" Copper asked.

The walrus moaned in reply, "Must…have…fishies. Need…strength. Must…_eat."_

Ratchet looked at Copper. "Copper, you don't happen to have a fishing rod, do you? I don't think he'll tell us anything unless we give him some fish."

"I just came out of jail, Ratchet! Of _course _I don't have a fishing rod!"

Clank knelt down by Wendell's head and told him, "Wendell, this is Clank. We want to assist you. We will nourish you with fish when we can acquire some. First, did you hear any important information from the robots?"

Surprisingly, Wendell sat up and stared at them with intelligent eyes. Copper began to wonder if the fish thing was just an act. "Info? Yeah, I heard some. Those 'botsknow who a lot of us are."

"Wait a minute…whaddya mean by _us?" _Copper asked.

Wendell grinned. "I'm a fighter, too! The stupid voice and the annoying moron were all an act."

Ratchet was dumbfounded. "You have _got _to be kidding me!"

Copper ignored the commando's comment. "Anyway, what were you saying?"

"They kept talking about 'Operation Apocalypse'," Wendell replied. "I don't know all the details, but they plan on destroying AnimaCity."

Copper stared at Ratchet with wide eyes. _"Oh no…"_

The puzzle pieces quickly came together in Ratchet's mind. "That's what the Police Chief meant by a bombing! They're going to _bomb _AnimaCity!"

Clank's green eyes were bright with shock. "Oh my. We must warn the mayor!"

"The little robot's right! We have to find Mr. Tortimer!" Wendell said frantically.

"We need to find all the other agents too," Copper pointed out. "Let's check the jetty!" They raced to the dock, where they found Kapp'n loading some boxes onto his tiny boat.

"Ahoy there, Copper! I thought you and Booker were caught, matey!" he greeted them.

Copper wasn't there to chitchat; he went right down to business. "We were, but a couple of friends busted us out. Have you taken the others to Paradisa?"

"Aye, I did, me doggie friend! But that's made me behind in me work!" The sea turtle gestured to the stacks of boxes all around the jetty and told them about the smuggling. "Two strong young lads are helpin' Blathers and K.K., too."

"Spike and Jimmy?" Ratchet guessed.

"I believe those were their names. Here they are now!"

Spike and Jimmy appeared with K.K. Slider and Blathers. They were all carrying boxes filled with weapons, gadgets, maps, and plans from the Museum. They set them down beside the boat.

Jimmy noticed Ratchet and Clank first. "Hey, Ratchet! You guys did it!" he exclaimed.

"Good work, Lombax! Not bad for an alien," said Spike.

The commando frowned. "Would you quit sayin' that?!"

The older boy shrugged. "Sorry. Anyway, these are the last of the boxes, so I thought we should go check on SpongeBob and Patrick. I wonder what happened to Sonic and Tails."

Ratchet offered a suggestion. "Maybe they went to check on DorkyPants and 'The Brain'."

Copper gave him a puzzled look. "Who?"

"SpongeBob and Patrick."

"Oh. Perfect names. Heheheh."

Ratchet turned back to Spike and Jimmy. "Guys, we heard the Secret Police Chief talking to his robots. He said that he discovered Resetti at our house, and he talked about SpongeBob and Patrick. He didn't take them with him, but he might have done some harm."

"He also mentioned an act called 'Operation Apocalypse'," Clank put in. "It is important that we locate Tortimer and consult him about this information."

Understanding their urgency, Spike set down his last box and said, "Let's go then!"

K.K. Slider told the boys, "You dudes go on ahead. I'll stay behind and help Kapp'n with these boxes." Blathers agreed to do the same, and Wendell said that he was going to Paradisa.

The four heroes and Copper raced away toward the gang's house, hoping (much to their surprise) that nothing terrible had happened to SpongeBob and Patrick.

* * *

One note before I go: the Agents of Doom Ratchet uses are not controlled by a remote in the games; they automatically attack any enemies close by. I made up the remote.


	15. Chapter 14: The Sky Is Falling!

_Version 2 Author's Notes:_

The title of Chapter #13 was a complete coincidence concerning the actual phrase "going commando", which is the title of the second Ratchet & Clank game; that's where I got it from, not the slang phrase. I wasn't even aware of the meaning of the phrase when I first wrote that chapter. I apologize if I offended you (by accident).

* * *

Chapter #14: The Sky Is Falling!

Ratchet & Clank, Spike & Jimmy, and Copper reached Acre B-3 in no time at all. They came to a stop when they saw that the lights were on in the first floor of the house.

Ratchet cocked his N90 Hurricane and said, "Looks like we've got company. Everybody stay back."

Cautiously he and Copper moved toward the door, and the dog tried the doorknob; as always, it was unlocked. They nodded towards each other, and the Lombax flattened against the wall with both hands on his weapon. Copper opened it slightly, then kicked it the rest of the way open and jumped out of the way. Turning on his heel, Ratchet moved himself into the doorway and aimed his rifle into the house, startling the people inside.

"Jiminy crickets!" cried a familiar voice.

"Ratchet, hold your fire! It's us!" said another.

The speakers were Tortimer and Sonic, who were inside the living room. Tom Nook, the Nooklings, and Tails came out of the other three first-floor rooms to see what the noise was about.

The commando lowered his weapon with a sigh of relief. "That was close. I thought there were robots in the house." He turned and called to the others, "It's okay, guys! It's just everyone else!"

Spike, Jimmy, Clank, and Copper went into the house. The appearance of the latter didn't go unnoticed by Tortimer.

"Copper! Yer back!" he exclaimed, slamming him in the back.

"It's all thanks to Ratchet and Clank," the police hound said. "Everybody else went to Paradisa."

Before the mayor could ask for an account of the jailbreak, Spike asked, "Where are SpongeBob and Patrick? Are they OK?"

Sonic shrugged. "We just got here, but we haven't seen or heard them."

"We haven't checked the second floor or the attic yet," Tails said.

Spike and Jimmy ran up the stairs to check it out; seconds later they were calling for the others. When they came up, they saw SpongeBob and Patrick tied up and gagged on the floor. They also appeared to be a few shades lighter than normal. Upon seeing their friends, the pair struggled and tried to talk through the washcloths in their mouths.

"What happened to them?" Jimmy said.

"The ACSP came here looking for Resetti," responded Tails. "I think their Chief tied them up."

The fox held up a note he had found tucked in between the cords. He unfolded it and read it.

"This is a word of warning to you foreign meddlers: cease aiding the Animal Alliance _immediately_, or suffer the consequences. My troops and I will not be so merciful the next time. –Chief of the Animal Crossing Secret Police."

Sonic rolled his eyes and folded his arms. "Does he really think we'll give up just like that?"

"I dunno, Sonic," his sidekick muttered, glancing at the two trembling sea creatures. "He could've done a lot more harm to those guys."

But the blue hedgehog only smirked. "I'll tell you what it is, Tails: he doesn't know who he's dealing with. We'll show him what we're made of next time."

Spike and Ratchet managed to untie SpongeBob and Patrick and removed the gags. The moment they were free, they leaped up and dove into Sonic's arms…again. Sonic was forced to the ground by their weight…again.

"Get off! I can't breathe!" the blue hedgehog groaned. Several of the gang slapped their foreheads.

Spike and Copper grabbed SpongeBob and yanked him off, but Patrick refused to be pried off. Ratchet had to hit him with his wrench.

Tortimer asked the sea creatures, "You fellers OK?"

SpongeBob tried to answer, but when he did, his voice was too hoarse for anyone to understand. Clank suggested, "I believe they are suffering from a lack of water."

Spike and Jimmy helped the pair get into their tubs. Within minutes, SpongeBob and Patrick were much better, and the latter was able to tell them all about the arrival of the robots and how they took Resetti.

"At least they didn't take ya with 'em," Tortimer said, once the account was finished. "Now, Ratchet, would ya mind tellin' us how the two of ya rescued Copper?"

Clank interrupted, "I am afraid that a detailed account is not the best proposal at the moment. The Secret Police Chief contacted his forces at their secret base in the police station and spoke of an 'Operation Apocalypse'. We believe it is a plan to bomb this village."

Tom Nook's eyes widened. "They _what?!_ That isn't good! We need to find shelter, and quickly!"

Suddenly they heard the door open and slam downstairs, and they raced down to see who it was. They found K.K. Slider braced against the door as though he was trying to hold back a raging bull. There was fear and terror in his eyes.

"K.K.! What's wrong?" questioned Tom. But many knew what it was before he even answered them.

"We've got a major problem, dudes!" whimpered the white dog. "I saw a squadron of bombers, comin' in fast!"

Everyone (minus the Nooklings and the sea creatures) scrambled out of the house to see what was happening. The sky was filled with pitch-black thunderclouds, and a terrible storm was brewing. Flashes of lighting danced among the clouds, and thunder echoed across the village. But the terror of the storm was nothing compared to the sight of the bombers that were swooping down towards AnimaCity.

"…And so it begins," Tortimer muttered.

"The plan was named perfectly," said the shopkeeper. "This _does _look like the end of the world!"

"This _is _the end…of the Animal Alliance," K.K. added.

"Uhh…guys?"

Everyone looked at Spike, who had talked.

"It'll be the end of _us_ if we don't find cover!" he exclaimed.

"You're right!" Ratchet said. "What are we thinking, standing out here where we can get killed?! Inside the house!"

"No!" Clank stated. "This residence is not a secure position to take refuge during a bombing! We should proceed to the Museum!"

"Why not the Secret Police base? That's deep!" Copper cut in.

**BOOM!!**

The crashing of thunder overhead silenced the argument. They agreed to head into the house to get the Nooklings, SpongeBob, and Patrick, and to stock up on provisions. But while they were doing this, the bombers dropped their payload.

**BOOM!! BANG!! KABOOM!! CRASH!!**

The Nooklings whimpered and latched onto their father's legs. Spike glanced at the ceiling with worry, and Jimmy bit his lip. Tortimer and K.K. packed faster, and Sonic stared out the window, watching the planes' movements.

_And then __**it **__happened._

Ratchet said, "Man, it's like the sky is falling."

The "it" was that Patrick took that last comment too seriously.

"The…sky…is falling?!" he exclaimed, eyes widening.

Ratchet saw the crazy look on the starfish's face and gulped. He would regret this moment for the rest of his life. _Uh oh. He's gonna crack,_ he thought.

"Patrick," Clank attempted to assure him, "Ratchet was only joking."

Too late. Patrick went nuts.

"_The sky is falling! The sky is falling! __Run for your liiiiiivves!!"_

Spike slapped one hand over his face. "He's lost it."

Then Patrick did something that even SpongeBob didn't expect: _he ran right __**through **__the door, leaving a Patrick-shaped hole in it!_

"_The sky is falling!! The sky is falling!! __**Aaaaaaggghhh!!"**_

SpongeBob ran through the hole in the door and shouted, "Patrick, wait! Come back! It's too dangerous out there!"

Just then, a nearby explosion blew away the back of the house, and everyone else ran out before it collapsed.

"Maybe Patrick was the smart one this time," said Sonic, staring at the ruins of their house. "We could've gotten killed!"

"That settles it!" Nook declared. "We're going to the Museum! Let's get Patrick and run for it!"

There was no argument about that. With Sonic in the lead, the gang ran away from Acre B-3. They managed to catch up to Patrick, who was still screaming hysterically.

"_The sky is falling!! The sky is falling!!"_

"_Shut up, Patrick!"_ Ratchet yelled. _"The sky is __**not**__ falling!!"_

The pink starfish looked back and called, "What's a sky?!"

"_Aaaaaaarrrggghhh!"_

Patrick was looking back when he asked the question, so he wasn't watching where he was going. He tripped over a rock, but Sonic grabbed him by the hand as he passed. For a while Patrick could only scream as he was lifted off the ground, since the hedgehog was running so fast. But he didn't leave any of the others behind, and slowed down.

Their journey seemed to take hours. The bombs kept falling from the sky, driving Patrick crazy with his "the sky is falling" issue. It was hard for the gang to anticipate where the bombshells would land, and they just had to guess. They often had to halt because there was a fallen tree in their way or they had to go around a giant crater made by a bomb. At one point, Sonic halted the group just as a bomb crashed a dozen yards from them, raining dirt and grass upon them.

"Whew! That was a close shave!" Tortimer said. "Thanks, Sonic."

"We were just lucky," he replied, watching the sky for more bombs.

"I don't get it."

All turned to Patrick. Jimmy asked, "Get what?" Then he slapped himself for asking.

"How can you shave a bomb when it doesn't have a face?"

Ratchet glared and snapped, "Shut it, Patrick."

"Hey, guys, look!" cried Tails, pointing. "We're almost there!"

He was right; the Museum, still standing in the midst of all the chaos, was just across the river. But they had to detour, since a bomb had hit the bridge. After jumping over craters and dodging explosions, they made it across. Blathers was at the entrance, waving them in frantically. "Hurry, inside!" he urged them.

They made it just as a bomb hit several yards away. Blathers shut the door quickly and they all went into the basement. "I kept some provisions here, so we can sit this out with ease!" he told them. "That is, if the bombs don't reach this place."

"Don't worry," interrupted K.K. Slider. "I shut that heavy door to the basement. It'll take quite a bit of bombing to break that!"

While the bombing leveled the town and the storm let out all its fury, the eight heroes and the Allies huddled together in their bunker and snacked on the food Blathers had prepared. Then they snuggled into their sleeping bags and (somehow) slept through the rest of the disaster.


	16. Chapter 15: Aftermath

Chapter #15: Aftermath

The next morning, the heroes (all except for SpongeBob and Patrick) and the Animal Allies woke up. Blathers went to the basement's green pantry to get some breakfast, and Sonic and Ratchet went to wake up the sea creatures. SpongeBob acted just fine after waking, but Patrick was the exact opposite.

"Come on, Peanut Brain, wake up," grumbled the Lombax as he shook the starfish.

"Sorry, I don't speak Japanese," came the sleepy response.

Ratchet wasn't in the mood for these silly antics, so he shook him more violently and yelled, "Wake _up_, you idiot! The bombing's over!"

He regretted saying that, because Patrick went nuts again; his eyes popped open, and he jumped out of bed and ran in circles, screaming, _"__The sky is falling! The sky is falling! The sky is falling! Aaaaaaaahhhh!!"_ Then he ran into a wall and fell to the floor with an, "Ouch."

Timmy and Tommy, who were feeling a bit glum, laughed at the sight. The others, even Ratchet, joined in, and their spirits lifted. Just then, Tortimer and Tom Nook, who had gone up to scout the area, returned.

Sonic saw them first. "Hey, guys. What did ya see up there?"

Tortimer sighed and responded, "Nuthin' good. The town is a disaster; craters are everywhere and the river has been stopped up at some points."

Tom was a little more optimistic. He told them that many of the buildings were still standing or had minimal damage. Also, The Chief and his ACSP robots had discovered their comrades' parts and had fled from the town instead of sheltering in their discovered base for the bombing. The Allies and heroes were safe for the moment.

"Where's K.K.?" Jimmy asked.

"He went to the nearby towns for some help. He should be back by lunch," Nook replied.

But just then K.K. entered the basement with a worried expression on his face.

"Slider!" exclaimed Tortimer. "Whatcha doin' back here so early?!"

The canine said, "We've got a major problem, dudes. Operation Apocalypse wasn't just for AnimaCity, but for _every Animal Alliance base."_

The mayor's eyes bugged out of his head. _"What?!"_

"That's all the other towns in this county!" moaned Tom.

K.K. nodded glumly. "When I went to Daytona, I found hundreds of refugees from all the towns with Alliance bases. All the survivors are comin' here, lookin' for leadership and safety. And that's just gonna make it worse. I dunno if we can hold that many animals!"

The raccoon folded his arms. "Well, we can't just turn them away! They can stay in any inhabitable buildings! We _must _gather them all together and be Good Samaritans!"

"Tom's right," agreed Tortimer. "Copper!"

The police dog ran over and saluted. "Yessir!"

"Gather all the villagers you can find and tell them about this situation. I want all the able-bodied animals to come and prepare to welcome those refugees! Kapp'n might be able to help us, too; K.K., go to Paradisa and bring all the supplies on the island to the Wishing Well."

"Aye aye!" cried the two dogs, saluting. Then they left.

The hero gang had listened to every word, and then Sonic turned to the others and asked, "Guys, think we oughtta lend a helping hand?"

Spike took out his Stun Club. "Of course! We shouldn't just sit here." The rest of them nodded their heads.

Grinning, the hedgehog asked the AC animals, "Tortimer, Nook, how can _we _help?"

The old tortoise scratched his chin. "Hmm…let's see…why don't ya go with K.K. and help him bring back some supplies from Paradisa's fort?"

"Sounds good! We'll go right now!" He rocketed out of the basement, with the other seven heroes struggling to catch up.

When they ran out into the open, even Sonic halted for a moment to look around. They could understand why Tortimer had been glum. The green, peaceful forest that had been AnimaCity was now a desolate wasteland full of eerie silence. Craters of all shapes and sizes dotted the landscape; some were deep pits while others were small holes. Fire burned in some places, and many trees had been obliterated or torched by explosions. The red dawn sky and the dark clouds also added to the gloom.

Ratchet shook his head. "I hate seeing dictators destroy good land. When I find Big Boss…" he twirled his wrench in his hands, "he's gonna get it."

Everyone else had similar feelings, and they nodded in agreement. But they could do nothing about it for the present; their mission was to get to the dock…if it was still there. With Spike and Jimmy leading (since Sonic didn't know the way), they found the dock, where K.K. was getting a large yacht ready.

"K.K.! Hold up for a moment!" Spike yelled.

The musician stopped his work to look at them. "Oh, it's you guys. The mayor sent ya?"

"We wish to assist you in your excursion to Paradisa Island," answered Clank, hopping from his spot on Ratchet's back.

He smiled and gestured for them to come aboard. "Pile in; this thing has enough room for all of you and the supplies."

The gang boarded the boat and they set sail for Paradisa. Only a few seconds after they reached open water, something happened.

"Finally! Back on the ocean!" exclaimed SpongeBob, fighting the urge to dive right in.

Someone gulped. "The…ocean? Oh drat."

"Whatsa matter, Sonic?" Spike asked. "Scared of the water?"

"I'm not scared!" the cobalt hedgehog retorted hotly. "I just…can't…swim."

"He sinks like a rock," confessed Tails.

"Hey, SpongeBob…" quipped Patrick.

"If you ask, 'Who owns Nookington's?', you're dead," growled Ratchet.

"I know the answer to that!"

Everyone turned to him in amazement.

He pointed at the Lombax. _"__You_ own Nookington's!"

Ratchet trembled with rage, and one eye and his fingers twitched, but miraculously he kept himself under control.

"Hey, SpongeBob, what's an ocean?"

Quite used to such dumb questions, the yellow sponge answered, "A body of water, Pat…a _big_ body of water."

"What's water?"

"You know! That blue, wet stuff that you can swim in! You can dive deep into it, but you'll run out of air and drown if you're under too long!"

Spike interrupted the explanation. "SpongeBob, I think you should shut up. You're making Sonic nervous."

By then, Sonic had crawled under his seat and was shivering, remembering his nasty experiences with water. He turned green in the face and held his sides.

Uhh…K.K.," Jimmy called to their "captain", "I think Sonic's getting seasick."

"Don't worry!" he shouted back, his eyes on their destination. "The island's only a mile or so away!"

Sonic groaned. "I don't think I should've eaten breakfast."

Luckily, Sonic didn't throw up, and they landed on Paradisa Island in no time. K.K. hopped out of the boat, and the others followed. Everybody but Sonic and Tails, that is; the hedgehog was too sick to go out, and Tails volunteered to take care of him while they went on their errand. With the dog in the lead, the rest of them walked to the fort in the center of the island. (A/N: Paradisa is bigger than the average island.) They found Kapp'n, the escapees from the ACSP jailbreak, and the lone islander Annalise, who was a brown horse in a red aloha shirt, and told them everything. Then, with their help, they loaded all the boxes of supplies onto the ship. Kapp'n and Annalise took the old turtle's dinghy and followed them back to the mainland. They found Copper and Booker waiting for them at the wrecked jetty.

"Tortimer's waiting for you at the Wishing Well," the first police dog explained. "He says to bring all the supplies there." Then, to the eight heroes, "He wants to talk to you guys, too. …You okay, hedgehog?"

Sonic moaned, but didn't answer. So K.K. did it for him. "He got kinda seasick."

"He is a hydrophobe," said Clank.

Copper blinked. "Huh?"

"It means he's afraid of water," explained Tails. "It comes from the word 'hydrophobia', which is the Latin word for 'fear or hate of water'."

"Gosh. _Two _walking dictionaries are too many!" Ratchet said.

"I might be able to get some medicine for you, Sonic," Copper offered. The hedgehog nodded.

All of them walked back to the Museum basement, and Copper got out a bottle of liquid medicine for Sonic.

"I thought they were pills," he said, "but this will work too."

"What flavor is it?" Sonic asked.

"Grape."

He made a face. _"__Blech!_ That'll just make me worse! Forget it!"

Ratchet folded his arms. "Come on, Sonic, just take it. Don't be such a baby."

Glaring daggers at the commando, Sonic reached for the spoon that had his medicine on it, but it was gone. "Hey! Who took the medicine? And the bottle?!"

"Patrick! That's not grape juice!" cried SpongeBob. "Don't drink it!"

But Pat ignored him and slurped the spoonful of medicine. "Yummy!"

Then they all saw the empty medicine bottle in his right hand, and many of them slapped their foreheads. Copper dug through the cabinet again, and with a shout of joy pulled out a tiny bottle of pills.

"Here they are! They got shoved into the back!" He gave Sonic the bottle and told him, "Take one with some water, Sonic. I've gotta check on K.K." Then he left to go help with the unloading.

Sonic shrugged and swallowed the pills with a glass of water. He felt a little better and told the others he was ready to go see Tortimer. They went to the Wishing Well and found him ordering around some of the villagers they had recruited. Tom Nook was labeling crates and his sons were taking an inventory of the supplies. The mayor waved them over.

"Ya made it just in time!" he said. "I gave my speech to the recruits, but I wanted to talk to y'all in private. While you were with K.K., I came up with yer jobs. Sonic and Tails, I need you two to be messengers and delivery boys for Nook. Go back and forth between job leaders and Animal Allies like myself and help when ya can."

"Sure!" and "Okay!" were their enthusiastic replies.

"Ratchet and Clank, would ya mind commandin' some of my animals that are goin' to keep the peace in the refugee camps? K.K. is doin' that, so you two can team up with him. Do yer best to prevent violence in the camps."

The Lombax saluted. "Ready for duty!"

From his position on Ratchet, the little robot said, "I am delighted to be of assistance to the needy."

"Spike and Jimmy, y'all look like strong lads. You can help Tom an' Copper clean up this sorry excuse fer a town. Do ya think y'all can clean up the buildings and unclog the rivers?"

"I don't see why not."

"I'll do my best!"

"SpongeBob and Patrick, why don't you fellers guard the Museum's basement? I don't want any bozos comin' in and stealin' anythang."

"Yes sir!" The yellow sponge attempted to salute, but actually hit himself too hard and fell over.

Patrick simply said, "Turkeys!"

"Well, whaddya waitin' fer? Git to it!"

The two sea creatures ran back to the basement.

"Do you really think someone will try to loot that basement, Tortimer?" Ratchet asked.

The tortoise chuckled. "Nah! I just thought that they should stay outta everybody's way! While we're doin our work, they won't bother us!"

He snickered. "Heh heh heh. Pretty clever plan, Mr. T.

Tortimer smiled. "Mr. T…I like that! Well, I'm not paying ya to stand here! Git to yer jobs!"

"Uhh, Tortimer, you're not paying us at all," Jimmy pointed out.

"I know; I just wanted to say that! Git goin'!"

The six of them ran to Acre A-4, where the remains of Nook's store stood. The shop's windows had shattered and there was a hole in the roof, but that was all, thank goodness. Some animals were already repairing the roof, and Tom was supervising. When he saw the heroes, he climbed down a ladder to greet them.

"Good to see you again! Did Tortimer give you jobs? And where are the sea creatures?"

"SpongeBob and Patrick are back in the basement, 'guarding' it," answered Clank, "and we were also given assignments."

Spike stepped forward. "Jimmy and I are supposed to help you clean up."

The shopkeeper nodded. "I see. Well then, you can assist my boys in cleaning out the inside of the store! All sorts of things fell in there, and we need it all out if we're going to house homeless animals in it! Get to it!"

The two boys disappeared into the shop, and the others informed Nook about their assignments.

"Well, you're going to have your hands full when those refugees get here. Wait! Here they are now!"

They all turned and saw a _huge_ crowd of animals streaming into AnimaCity through the train station. (A/N: They had come via trains that Porter and other engineers had piloted.) The creatures ranged from dogs and cats to kangaroos and anteaters, and from tiny birds to giant bears. Many carried heavy sacks over their shoulders, and some had bandages wrapped on their foreheads, arms, and legs. All of them wore gloomy looks on their faces.

Sonic whistled. "It's a lot worse than I thought."

"There must be hundreds of them!" Tails said, his blue eyes growing wide.

Just then, Copper ran out of the crowd to them and said, "Tortimer sent me to tell you and the refugees that he's giving a speech and instructions at the Wishing Well."

"All right then! Let's go!" said Nook.

Tom called out Spike and Jimmy, and they rejoined the group. Copper led the way to the Wishing Well, where the mayor was standing on a wooden platform. Booker, Kapp'n, Annalise, and K.K. Slider were standing beside him. All around the well were crowds of refugees; it was a sea of animals, with the platform like an island. When the gang walked up to Tortimer, he invited them to sit next to the others. The gang took their seats, and the old tortoise began his speech.


	17. Chapter 16: Cleaning Up

Chapter #16: Cleaning Up

"Citizens of Animal Crossing," Tortimer began, "welcome to AnimaCity…or what's left of it. I apologize for not bein' fully ready for yer arrival, but, as y'all can see, we were bombed as well. But don't doubt yer decision to come here; you'll git plenty of food and shelter. But what yer lookin' for most is leadership, and I'm here to answer all yer questions and do as much as I can to make y'all feel at home. I'll start by answerin' any questions ya have. If yer curious 'bout somethin', now's the time to speak up."

A shouting match ensued, but, luckily, Copper was at hand and managed to find the person who spoke first. It was a lion named Rex. (A/N: I don't know all the animals' catchphrases, so I won't put all of them in.)

"Where are we gonna sleep?"

"This town wasn't hit as hard as some other towns, so many of our buildins are still standin'," the mayor answered. "We'll cram as many people as we can into 'em, and we've got tents to make camps when they get full."

"What about the villagers' houses?"

"Some of 'em are still standin', but because of looters, no one is allowed inside until the villager cleans it out fer use."

There was some complaining about this, but Tortimer just ignored it. He asked for the next person, and Copper picked Bangle the brown-and-yellow tiger, who asked, "What is there to eat?"

"Some of our female villagers have volunteered to cook meals (and you can do this too, might I add). But we need to conserve most of our supplies, so the main course will be Animal Alliance rations, the MREs, 'Meals Ready to Eat'."

There was some groaning, but the mayor moved on to the next animal, Hornsby the purple rhino.

"What about police? I don't wanna get robbed!"

"Already taken care of. I've got Copper and some squads to keep the peace. They can also fight off robots if they come here. We also have a very helpful ally, a commando named Ratchet. I've given him command of a team of Allies. Ratchet, could ya please stand up?"

Ratchet obeyed, though reluctantly. He felt the curious stares of the animals, and sat back down as soon as Tortimer gave him permission.

"Now, is that all of the questions?" No one spoke, and he nodded. "Good. Now, what I want y'all to do is go down to the police station. Tom Nook will be there to write down yer names. When he's done that, he will assign ya to a buildin'. Also, if yer lookin' for missin' loved ones, y'all can use the bulletin board in Acre B-3. I warn y'all to keep yer personal belongins close, 'cause it'll be very hard for our police to track down missin' items in this post-bombing chaos. This brings me to the end of my speech." He cleared his throat and continued.

"Last night, June 15th, the night of the bombing, was a terrible day…_a day that will live in infamy._ Animal Crossing will never forget the day when a ruthless dictator destroyed hundreds of homes and damaged the resistance against him. Although the Animal Alliance is crippled, it is _not _beaten. We're far from it! In fact, this event will spur us on to our goal…to win back Animal Crossing's independence!" The crowd cheered, and the heroes found themselves clapping.

"I can see why he's the mayor and the leader of the Alliance," Ratchet remarked. "He's got a way with words."

"And he's old," Jimmy added. Everyone stared at him. He held up his hands. "What?"

Then Tom Nook walked up to them. "Hey, fellows, I'm going to need your help with signing in the animals."

"What are we supposed to do?" Spike asked.

"Once I've signed in an animal and given them a nametag, I want you to give them one ration, a sleeping bag, and a set of clean clothes. If there's a family, give each of them an item. It's simple!"

Ratchet sighed. "Will this work _ever _end?"

"Remember, Ratchet," Jimmy told him, "'A hero's work is never—'"

The Lombax rolled his eyes. "I know, I know."

Sonic folded his arms and lightly stamped his foot on the ground repeatedly. "Less talking and more action! Let's go!" Then he rocketed off after Nook.

The others watched him, and then Ratchet asked Tails, "Is he always like that?"

The fox shrugged with a small grin. "Pretty much."

They went over to the police station, where there was already a _long_ line of animals. Tom took a seat at the table in front of the station and began writing down names and handing out nametags. Sonic and Ratchet lugged some sleeping bags outside to hand out, and Tails and Clank opened a package of rations. The boys found the clothes and carried a box to a spot by the sleeping bags. Within seconds they were passing out items to the refugees. And the line just kept going on and on…

* * *

An hour later, the eight heroes took a break and snacked on a few rations. They didn't have much of a taste, but no one complained.

Ratchet gave a groan and rubbed the back of his neck. "Man, am I tired…"

Jimmy agreed, "My arms feel ready to fall off."

Suddenly they heard two familiar voices.

"We'll help!"

"What's help?"

Spike groaned. "Just who we need: SpongeBob and Patrick."

The two sea creatures ran up to them, and Ratchet asked, "Weren't you two supposed to be guarding the basement?"

"Blathers told us to take a break!" SpongeBob replied.

* * *

**(Flashback to a few minutes ago)**

"Patrick! Don't chew on those fossils!" Blathers cried. "You're worse than Booker! Here, give me the bone!" He grabbed one end of the bone Patrick held and attempted to take it back.

Patrick tugged back. "My bone!"

"No it's not!"

He frowned a little and tugged harder. _"__My bone!"_

The owl also tugged harder. "_No_, it's not!"

"**My bone!" **He tugged again, and Blathers stumbled.

But Blathers got back up and did the same. "_No_, it's _not_!"

"_**My bone!"**_

Patrick tugged so hard that he threw Blathers over his head and into a red vase. SpongeBob, who had been looking at the bugs, came over to see what was going on.

"Hey, Pat! That's a pretty big bone! Where'd you get it?"

In response, his friend bared his teeth and growled like a dog. "Grr…my bone."

"Okay okay, no offense!" he exclaimed, holding his hands up in the air.

Patrick growled some more and then resumed chewing on the bone.

_I wonder if this is a side effect from that medicine…_ SpongeBob thought. Then he noticed that Blathers was gone and asked, "Hey Patrick, where's Blathers?"

Right on cue, Blathers' voice echoed from inside the red vase. "Ohhhh…my…head."

The yellow sponge peeked into the vase and grinned. "Hey, Mr. Blathers! Are you playing hide-and-seek? You didn't tell me! I wanna play!"

The curator climbed out of the vase and shook himself to get rid of any dust. "I'm not playing. Your friend threw me in here."

His eyebrows rose. "Oh. Well, it's not like Patrick to be mean…" He glanced at Patrick out of the corner of one eye, and bit his lip when he saw that he was still chomping on the bone and growling.

Blathers sighed deeply and rubbed his forehead. "I tell you what. Why don't you take a break and see your friends? I can guard the basement."

"Really?! Thanks!" He turned to Patrick and waved for him to follow. "Come on, Pat! Leave the bone and come with me!"

The starfish suddenly grinned and dropped the bone. "Pickles!" He raced after SpongeBob up the stairs and out of the secret basement.

Once they were out of sight, Blathers fainted in relief.

**(Flashback ends)**

* * *

"He's a nice guy!" said SpongeBob. "I like all the bugs he's got!"

Spike whispered to Ratchet, "I feel sorry for Blathers. He had to put up with these guys for a long time."

"Especially with Patrick," the commando whispered back.

"Is there anything we can do?" asked SpongeBob.

Ratchet, Spike, and Jimmy tossed reluctant glances at one another, but Sonic scratched his chin thoughtfully. Then he answered, "You can go get us more clothes and food. Just make sure Patrick doesn't eat any rations."

"Okay!" He ran into the station, and Patrick followed. A minute later, he returned carrying two boxes of food and shirts. He set them down and took the empty boxes back into the building. The others were quite surprised at how he could carry them.

"He's stronger than he looks," Ratchet remarked.

"Not bad for a sea sponge," Spike added.

Suddenly a scream split the air. A black cat wearing a ski mask ran into the acre, and a pink mouse named Candi followed him. "Stop him!" she cried. "He's got my purse!"

Ratchet groaned. "My first police action today." He pulled out his N90 Hurricane and cocked it. "I'd better take care of this."

**ZOOM!**

"Sonic's way ahead of ya, Ratchet," said Spike.

The blue streak that was Sonic ran right in front of the thief. The force of the wind knocked the cat down on his tail, and the purse fell from his hands. The blue hedgehog rocketed back and snatched it from the ground. He stopped in front of Candi, who watched him with eyes as wide as saucers.

But the thief wasn't going to give up that easily. With any angry yowl, he got back up and leaped toward Sonic. The hedgehog was slightly caught off guard, and whirled around with fists raised. But suddenly Ratchet was there with his Omniwrench, which he used to hit the cat in the gut. The thief fell to the ground and clutched his stomach, groaning, "Urghh…aw, man…busted."

Smirking, the Lombax twirled his wrench with one hand and tucked it into its place on his belt. "Ya got that right, kitty."

Grinning also, Sonic walked up to Candi and held out the stolen purse. "Here's your purse back."

"Th-thank you," she stammered. "How did you do that?"

"It's a gift I have," he replied with a shrug. He turned to Ratchet and asked, "You gonna 'take him downtown', Ratchet?"

The commando grabbed the thief by the scruff of his neck. "Sure. Wanna come, Sonic?"

"Okay."

The two each took one arm of the cat and dragged him away to the town hall, where Tortimer and Copper had set up a makeshift detention center. As they left, a crowd of refugees that had witnessed the skirmish whispered to one another. (A/N: No particular villagers from the game in here; I just picked colors and species out of a hat.)

"Did you see that?" a dark gray wolf whispered.

"Unbelievable!" exclaimed a green rabbit. "Did you see that hedgehog move? He was like lightning! And that weird-looking one has the biggest wrench I've ever seen!"

"Who were those guys? I've never seen 'em around here before," said another rabbit.

"Didn't you hear them talking?" the wolf replied. "The weird one is Ratchet, and the hedgehog is Sonic."

"I'll bet they're with the Animal Alliance," a calico cat interjected. "They've been recruiting some strange characters lately…"

On another side of the crowd, a trio of female animals watched the two heroes leave with dreamy looks.

"That Ratchet guy is sooo handsome," a pink squirrel said.

"But Sonic was so fast," sighed another. "My hero…"

A third girl sighed dreamily and fainted against a tree, and the other two began to argue about which one was cuter. The other six heroes saw and heard everything, and Tails covered his face and muttered, "Oh brother."

"Sonic and Ratchet are gonna have some crazy female fans running after them soon," Spike said, shaking his head. "Trust me; I had the same thing happen to me when I captured all the monkeys and put them back in Monkey Park."

Jimmy added, "I remember that. You got lots of love letters."

His cousin flushed almost the same color as his hair. "It was embarrassing."

"Sonic's not very fond of fan girls either," Tails said. "They drive him nuts."

"I cannot determine how Ratchet will react to this situation," Clank put in with a shrug. "He has never had many female fans."

Just then Ratchet and Sonic returned, and the latter greeted them, "Hey, guys! Copper's got the thief in jail now."

"You guys have become the talk of the town already," Spike told them, "or will be soon."

The blue hedgehog chuckled. "Word gets around just as fast as I do around here, doesn't it?"

"You've got quite a few crazy fan girls already."

Ratchet gave a groan and shook his head; the last thing he wanted was a bunch of love-struck girls following him around. Sonic, on the other hand, had a bigger reaction; his green eyes got several sizes bigger. Tails saw it and seemed to read his mind.

"Don't worry, Sonic, there aren't any girl hedgehogs, except for the Able Sisters. And they aren't even here."

He wiped his forehead and leaned against the police station. "Phew! Thanks, little bro! For a moment I was worried _she_ had followed me all the way here!"

Spike cocked an eyebrow. "Who's 'she'? A hedgehog fan girl?"

Tails nodded. "Uh huh. I know which one he's talking about."

With a big sigh, Sonic sat on a box of sleeping bags and said, "Persistence, thy name is Amy Rose."

"Perfect name," Ratchet said with a snicker.

"She's crazy, and I mean _crazy _about me!"

"Crazy about you to what degree?" Clank inquired in curiosity.

The hedgehog's face turned beet red, and he looked down at his sneakers. "I don't like talking about it."

Spike cracked a grin. "Lemme guess: she wants to marry you."

He hung his head in embarrassment. "Yup."

"Oh brother," said Jimmy, slapping his forehead.

"Can we just drop this subject? Just talking about Amy makes me nervous."

Ratchet suddenly gave a mischievous, maybe even evil, grin. "In what way?"

Sonic shot a glare at him. "Don't even _think _that I like her in _that _way!" he exclaimed, raising his voice.

Suddenly Patrick, who had been quiet during the whole incident, cocked his head, gave a goofy smile, and asked, "You're in love with a rose?"

There was a moment of stunned silence, and then everyone (excluding Sonic, Tails, and Clank) busted out laughing.

"For once, Peanut Brain was actually funny!" Ratchet gasped, holding his sides.

Sonic fixed Patrick with a glare that could have melted an iceberg.

"Uh, guys," Tails broke in, "Sonic takes it too seriously. I think you should stop."

The fox's words and the look on his face showed how serious he was, and Ratchet, Spike, Jimmy and SpongeBob stopped; Patrick, however, was too stupid to know when to quit. In fact, unfortunately for Sonic and him (as we will see), he knew a popular rhyme that was perfect for the situation.

"'Sonic and Rosie, sittin' in a tree, _k-i-s_—_gulk!"_

The "gulk" was Sonic grabbing Patrick by the throat.

"Stop now and I'll spare you a thrashing," he growled with a dangerous gleam in his eyes.

Ratchet whistled. "You're right, Tails; he's dead serious."

But Patrick still didn't catch on, and finished, "…_s-i-n-g!"_

Sonic choked him harder, and then, with amazing speed and force, he threw the starfish into an empty box and closed the top. He looked around with mischievous eyes and said, "Hey Ratchet, got a bazooka or something that I can borrow?"

The other six stared at him with wide eyes, and SpongeBob cried, "Don't do it, Sonic!"

From inside the box, Patrick asked, "Who's Sonic?" Sonic glared and kicked his box. "Ouch."

But then Sonic grinned. "I was just joking, guys. I'm just gonna keep him in this box until our work is done." They sighed in relief.

"But he can't breathe!" protested SpongeBob.

Ratchet shrugged and walked up. "I'll shoot a hole in it with my N90 then!"

"No, don't!"

_Bang!_

Too late.

The shot left a big hole in one side of the box. SpongeBob ran up to it and peeked in. "Patrick, are you okay?!"

"…Ouch," came the weak reply.

Suddenly Spike looked up and saw a new crowd of animals walking towards them. "Guys, some stragglers are coming. Let's get back to work."

Luckily for them, these stragglers were the last of the refugees, and Tom Nook, who had taken advantage of the pause and had gone to check on his store, told them to go to their original jobs. The gang dropped off SpongeBob and Patrick at the Museum, where they saw no sign of Blathers.

SpongeBob shrugged and said, "Oh well. We'll just surprise him. Speaking of which, I want to do something special in here, so come back at around 5:00, okay?"

"Whatcha gonna do? Tear it all down?" asked Jimmy.

He shook his head and grinned. "No, it's a secret." Then he turned to Patrick, who was still in the box, and said, "Come on, Pat! We're going inside the Museum!"

"I don't wanna go!" came the starfish's voice from inside his "prison".

"Aw, come on! It'll be fun!"

"What's fun?" Ratchet glared and kicked the box, which solicited another, "Ouch."

After thinking for a moment, SpongeBob got an idea. "We'll go find that bone you like!"

The box suddenly sprouted two pink, stubby legs, which propelled it and Patrick towards the Museum.

"I want my bone!" he cried, and shoved his arms through two other sides of the box as well.

The Museum wasn't very far away from the police station, but there were plenty of obstacles along the way: trees that were still rooted, trees that were lying in their path, and animals wandering around. Since he was unable to see anything, Patrick bumped into several of these as he ran for their destination. The other seven followed behind him, a few (namely Spike, Jimmy, Ratchet, and Sonic) snickering whenever he ran into something. When they went into the marble building, everyone saw that the basement door was open…everyone except Patrick, that is. He kept going until he tripped on one of the steps, and the box tumbled down the stairway, coming to a rest at the bottom. From the sound of Patrick's voice, he wasn't hurt too bad.

"Peanuts!"

SpongeBob wiped his forehead in relief, "Phew! For a moment I was worried that he broke his neck or something!"

"No such luck…" Ratchet muttered to himself.

With SpongeBob and Patrick dropped off, the other six heroes left for the Wishing Well, where Tortimer was giving orders to some animals in uniform armed with small weapons. K.K. Slider, who was among them, saw the group and came over to them.

"Hey dudes," he greeted. "Tortimer is getting ready to send out some animals to check the abandoned towns. He wants you alien dudes to go."

Ratchet rolled his eyes at the word "alien", but he didn't comment. Instead he replied, "Okay. Clank and I will go."

Tortimer finished his orders and went over to them. "Hey there, fellers! I've made a small change of plans. A lotta animals volunteered to be messengers, so I don't think I'll be needin' ya, Sonic. You can go with Ratchet and Clank if ya want."

The hedgehog's eyebrows rose. "No kiddin'. Sure, I guess I'll go. But what'll happen with Tails?"

"He can work with Spike and Jimmy on those buildings. That okay, son?"

The fox smiled and replied, "Yeah. I'm good with engineering."

"He's modified the _Tornado _all by himself," Sonic remarked with a proud grin.

It was Tortimer's turn to be surprised. _"__Really?"_ He stared at Tails, who blushed, looked down at his feet, and scraped one shoe along the ground. "This should be interestin'."

"When did ya say we would be leavin', Mr. T?" K.K. asked.

"I'm sendin' some men out right now, but I want you, Ratchet, Sonic, an' yer boys to go at sunset fer a sort of night patrol."

The dog scratched his chin for a moment, and then nodded his head. "Works for me."

The tortoise looked at the entire group and addressed them all. "Can y'all stay together 'till it's time to go? It's hard to track everybody down today."

They all saluted and replied in unison, "Yes, sir!"

"Thanks, and good luck to y'all!" Smiling broadly, the mayor walked off to check on Copper and Booker, who were working on the Post Office.

The canine musician turned to the hero gang and suggested, "Let's check on Nook's shop. That still needs some cleanin' out."

They went to Nookington's and found a crowd of refugees that had been assigned to the building. The Nooklings and some other animals were moving tables, beds, and other furniture into the shop for the crowd, and Tom Nook was doing a roll call. The heroes were admitted inside, and they helped set things up. When everything was ready, the animals slowly filed in and picked places partitioned off for sleeping.

K.K. pulled up a stool and started playing one of his most popular (perhaps his best) songs: "Rockin' K.K.". Many animals tapped their feet to the beat and some even danced. When he was finished, they begged for more, and the dog struck up "Lucky K.K.", and even more people danced to the lively tune.

After playing about 3 more songs, K.K. stopped and took the gang to one of the other buildings in construction, the Post Office. The group of seven set to work handing up boards of wood to the workers on the roof and cleaning out the inside of the office. They took breaks every hour or so until 4:30, when the job was finished. Blathers, who had been supervising the work, went to get the refugees assigned to the Post Office. The gang helped them settle in once again, and K.K. played some more of his famous music, which seemed to raise the homeless animals' spirits. It was then that Tails noticed the time.

"It's 5:00!" he declared. "SpongeBob and Patrick must be ready for us!"

Sonic also checked the Post Office clock and slapped his forehead. "I almost forgot! Let's get Blathers and go!"

After retrieving the curator, they ran off to the Museum to see the "surprise" the sea creatures had in store for them. Blathers was glad to see that the building looked normal.

"I'm surprised it's still standing, especially since Patrick has been occupying it," he said.

They went inside, and an amazing sight greeted them.

The entire museum was clean and well organized. All the holes in the roof were closed up with wood temporarily, and the stained windows in the lobby were patched up. In the aquarium wing, the fish tanks were repaired or replaced, and all the fish were put in their correct places. In the insect wing, the long windows were patched up, and the insect boxes were stacked by color. In the art wing, all the paintings were hung in their correct places. The fossil room was the most impressive of them all. Every single skeleton was set in its proper spot; not a single bone was missing or out of place.

The group, especially Blathers, was open-mouthed.

"…Wow," Spike said.

"Everything's so…neat," his cousin commented.

Tails studied the T-rex skeleton on display. "Couldn't have done better myself."

Clank remarked, "Very impressive."

Sonic whistled. "And to think SpongeBob and Patrick did this."

"Or SpongeBob anyway," Ratchet corrected him.

Blathers, who had not heard that fact before, whirled around and gaped at them with wide eyes. _"What?! _But…but th-that's…impossible!"

Suddenly, SpongeBob came up out of the basement, and his face split into a huge grin when he saw the others. "Hey, guys! Like what I did with the place?"

"Unbelievable, SpongeBob!" replied Jimmy.

"How'd you do it?!" Spike asked.

"It was easy!" the sea sponge said with a small shrug. "I just found the boxes of museum stuff Blathers left behind and put them in their proper places! It was no sweat!"

"How did you manage to repair the roof?" Clank inquired, and pointed to the Museum's ceiling; it had some pieces missing, but they were covered up from outside by plywood.

"That was the one thing I didn't do. Copper and Booker came and did that. I did everything else."

Sonic folded his arms and smiled. "You never cease to surprise us, SpongeBob."

"Where's Patrick?" asked Ratchet. "Did he do anything?"

SpongeBob shook his head and pointed one thumb to the basement. "No, I just kept him in his box and let him have his bone. Turns out it was Booker's bone."

As if on cue, Booker came in, and he heard the sponge's last comment. He blinked and said, "Somebody's got my bone? He'll pay for taking it! I think…" He ran into the basement to get his bone back. Several minutes later, the gang heard shouting.

"Give it back! It's _my _bone! I think…"

"My bone!"

"No, it's _mine!"_

"_My bone!"_

"No, it's **mine!"**

"**My bone!"**

"Grrr…_**my**_…_**bone!"**_

"_**My bone!!"**_

Blathers held his head in his wings and moaned, "Oh no, here we go again…"

_Whack!_

"_Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!!"_

Booker came flying out of the basement and landed with a thud at their feet. Blathers looked down at him and said, "Booker, I think it's _his _bone now." The bulldog gulped and nodded his head vigorously with wide eyes.

Then Patrick came out of the basement with the bone in his mouth, chewing on it noisily. Everyone stared at him, mostly in surprise, disgust, and confusion. Copper entered the Museum lobby at about the same time.

"Hey guys! All the holes in the roofs are fixed up now!" Then he noticed Patrick. "Hey, isn't that _your _bone, Booker?"

"It's his now, I think…" his partner stammered.

Patrick, while chewing, noticed Copper watching him, and clutched the bone tightly. "Grrr…my…bone."

The police dog held up his hands and backed away. "Okay, okay, it's yours!"

Satisfied, he sat down with the bone in mouth and began panting like a puppy. "Arf arf!"

Everyone stared at him, and Ratchet shook his head and said, "What a twisted little weirdo."

Copper did his best to ignore the starfish and addressed the hero gang and Blathers again. "I came to tell you guys that Tortimer wants you to get ready to go on night patrol."

"Are you goin' too, Copper?" asked Sonic.

"Yup, and I'll be with you guys."

Jimmy pointed at Booker and inquired, "Will he come?"

Copper shook his head. "Of course not! He'd be more of a hindrance than a help!"

Booker scratched his head. "What's a hindrance?"

Ratchet heard him, and watched the bulldog out of the corner of one eye. "You've got a point."

Spike stepped forward. "What about Jimmy, Tails, and me?"

"Tortimer wants you to help out with the villagers' houses," Copper replied. "He's waiting at Acre B-3."

"What do _we _do?" SpongeBob butted in, jumping up and down.

"Arf! I want my treats!" exclaimed Patrick, continuing his dog impression.

Copper thought on that hard. "Uhhh…why don't you stay here and keep an eye on the Museum with Blathers?" The owl's eyes widened, and he frantically waved his arms (wings?) in a "no" gesture.

SpongeBob shrugged and said, "Okay, I guess." Behind him, Blathers moaned and held his head in his hands.

"Arf!" Patrick yipped again. "I wanna go for a walk! Arf!"

Copper glared at him and snapped, "That's pretty insulting, you know."

"Woof! I'm a stupid dog named Copper! Woof!"

"Why you…"

"Woof! Arf? I only speak Dog and Chinese."

"You're speaking English!"

"Bark bark! Woof! Arf! What's English?"

Copper laid back his ears and gave him a genuine dog growl. But Pat hardly paid attention to the warning.

"Woof! Arf arf arf! Bark! Yap yap! Pardon my Dog, but I don't speak Dog."

_Whack!_

"Ouch." The pink starfish fell to the floor.

As you might've guessed by now, Copper had borrowed Ratchet's wrench (or rather, Ratchet had offered it to him), and had knocked Patrick in the back of the head. After calming down, he told the gang (all except for SpongeBob, Patrick, and Blathers, of course) to come with him to the train station. The owl and the sea sponge said their good-byes, and the group of eight (Booker tagged along) marched to their destination. They found Tortimer talking with Porter and some other Allies. The mayor waved them over.

"Hey there, heroes! The sun's about to set, so it's time fer the soldiers to go check out the nearby towns to our west."

(A/N: The other company went east, so the towns the gang is checking out haven't been investigated yet.)

"What about the rest of us?" Spike asked again. "Copper said we would work with the villagers in cleaning out their houses."

Tortimer nodded. "That's what I had in mind. Jeremiah and Anchovy's houses are closest, in Acre B-1. They should be there."

"We'll go right away. Bye, guys!"

"Have fun!" Jimmy said, waving as he ran to catch up with his cousin.

Tails shook Sonic's hand and said, "Good luck, Sonic!"

"See you later, Tails." In return, the blue hedgehog ruffled the fur on the fox's forehead. Then Tails darted off after Spike and Jimmy for Acre B-1.

Ratchet, Clank, Sonic, K.K., and Copper joined the group of Allies that were going on the mission. Before they began their trek, Tortimer gave them a kind of farewell speech.

"I wish y'all good luck and that everyone will return safely! You've all been briefed, so I don't need to do it agin. But here's my last warning: be careful! Big Boss might've sent some nasty 'bots to take survivors. Don't fire on them unless you're fired upon! Our objective is stealth and recon, not combat. Give medical treatment to any survivors, and capture and question any animals suspected of being spies. That's all, men; move out!"

The tiny army prepared their weapons and marched down the train tracks westward to the destroyed towns, which lay near the border of Big Boss's territory.

* * *

_Version 2 Author's Notes:_

In case anyone was wondering, yes, I did get the last part of Tortimer's speech from President Franklin Roosevelt's speech after Pearl Harbor. What can I say; I love my American history. ;)


	18. Chapter 17: Discovery in Canyon City

Chapter #17: Discovery in Canyon City

The sun was setting in the company's faces as they marched westward along the train tracks. For a while, the scenery remained the same—meadows and forests flanked the track. Then the tracks turned right into a canyon with tall sides. The canyon ended in a wall, but the track continued through a dark tunnel. The tiny army lit torches and trudged onward into the darkness. After about fifteen minutes of walking, they reached a small cabin that had been built into the side of the passage. A train switch sat close by it. Further ahead the track split into three tunnels, each darker than the original. The company halted at K.K.'s signal.

"All right, dudes, the track splits up, and we gotta do the same," he declared. "Stay with your squad."

The army split into three groups, and two began marching down the middle and right tunnels. Ratchet, Clank, and Sonic stayed with K.K. and Copper, since they were part of their group. They took the left tunnel and went on in silence. After about fifteen more minutes of jogging, the tunnel ended in a dim, red light. They came out into a small meadow of wildflowers of all colors, and they continued following the train tracks.

The sun was almost gone for the day, glowing blood red on the horizon when they finally reached the remains of a train station. There was no roof, and the clock from the tower was lying on the ground, with its hands stopped on the exact time the bomb had struck. Sitting close by it was a sign that said, "Welcome to Canyon City". (A/N: Once again, this town can't be typed in the game.) The entire town was silent.

Slider slowed down and gestured to the rubble of the train station. "Here's our stop."

Copper groaned. "Canyon City? Why here, K.K.?"

Clank, who was once again in his backpack mode on Ratchet's back, peeked over the Lombax's shoulder at the two dogs. "Is something wrong? Is this residence considered hazardous to the surrounding lands?"

The police dog nodded. "This place is a hangout for all sorts of shady characters. Lately Big Boss has sent some of his spies here to collect information, and we think that he plans on hiring more spies and taking over the town, since there are lots of criminals he could recruit." Then he turned to the musician and snapped, "Which is why I'm askin' why we came here!"

"This is the place where I learned about the ACSP and some of Big Boss's other plans," K.K. answered. "There's another, more important reason, though. I was talkin' with some animals earlier today, and they said that the Secret Police retreated here after it was bombed. I wanna see if they're right. Sonic, Ratchet, and Clank, I want you guys to follow me into the town. Everybody else will stay and keep an eye on things; see if anyone is comin' and goin' through here. "

"That includes me, right?" asked Copper.

He shrugged. "'Course, dude. Who else will take charge of our group while we're gone?"

The police officer folded his arms. "Fine. I didn't want to go in there anyway."

Together, dog, hedgehog, Lombax, and robot crept into the dark, silent town. They stayed in the shadows, just in case someone might still be living there. They checked all of the buildings and houses in the village and often found looters sleeping inside, with bags of stolen items all around the rooms. K.K. decided to leave them alone. Their search brought up no robots.

"Oh well, I guess it was just a myth after all," he sighed.

"Wait a sec, K.K.! I just remembered!" Ratchet cut in. "The robots might be hiding in an underground base in the police station, just like in AnimaCity!"

Sonic slapped his forehead. "How could we forget?! Let's check it out!"

They went back to the police station and found it silent and normal. That is, until Ratchet showed them the secret door in the locker. Once again, they were confronted by a pitch-black tunnel.

Sonic whistled and said, "Okay, who's goin' inside the dark, robot-infested tunnel first?" (A/N: Yes, I got that from _National Treasure._ XP)

"Sonic, now is not the time for silly jokes," Clank said firmly.

K.K. pulled out a flashlight and led the way into the inky darkness. Sonic stayed in the middle, and Ratchet, with Clank on his back, watched their backs with his N90 Hurricane loaded. They eventually came to a steel door much like the one in AnimaCity, but it didn't have a slot near the top. Clank analyzed it and stated that a computer on the other side probably controlled it. They realized that the trick Ratchet had used on the other door probably wouldn't work again, and they decided to wait until a robot came to the door.

They didn't have to wait long; an ACSP soldier marched down the tunnel and came to the door. It spoke the password, and the door creaked upwards. When the robot was far away from the door, they darted forwards and made it through just before the door shut. They high-fived each other before continuing onward deeper into the tunnel.

They reached another door, but light was coming out from under it, and there were voices, most of them robotic. The foursome listened intently to the conversation.

"Chief, Company B is armed and ready for combat."

"Very good, Sergeant."

Ratchet's eyes narrowed, and he growled, "It's that Secret Police Chief again!" The other three shushed him.

"Permission to speak freely, sir," the robot sergeant continued.

"A strange request, but I shall grant it. Go ahead."

"Self-unit was briefed on Operation Apocalypse, but not on this mission; details of this new operation are requested."

The Chief sighed. "I should've expected this. Fine then. First of all, this isn't a new operation. This is Operation Apocalypse: Phase Two."

The four eavesdroppers exchanged shocked glances, and K.K. gasped, "Phase _Two?!"_

"This can't be good," muttered Sonic.

"Self-unit does not fully comprehend, sir," droned the sergeant. "There was no briefing on a second phase of Operation Apocalypse."

"And for several reasons. One: This was highly classified; even our most trusted spies weren't told of it. Two: We weren't sure if this phase would be enacted or not. Three: The plans weren't entirely completed."

"Self-unit requests motives for reasons."

Ratchet, Sonic, and Slider were confused, so Clank whispered, "The sergeant asked why."

"We were waiting to see what the survivors would do after the bombing," answered the Secret Police Chief. "They acted exactly as The Boss predicted; they ran to their leader, Tortimer, who has been hiding in AnimaCity. We've suspected that AnimaCity is the true HQ of the Animal Alliance."

K.K. groaned. "They've found us."

"The bombing was the easy part; it's Phase Two that will be tough. Phase One was just herding the cattle in the pens. …Now it's time for the slaughter."

The three organic intruders gulped, and Clank said, "Oh, dear."

"The slaughter, sir?"

"In Phase Two, _the Secret Police will invade AnimaCity and take everyone captive! _ _Not one Rebel will escape from the ultimate trap."_

The heroes' eyes widened, and K.K. almost fainted in shock.

"Does that satisfy you, Sergeant? Or do you want to hear more and make the plan late?"

"…Negative. Request time for deployment."

"_Now._ Tell them to surround the town and give them a chance to surrender. If they do, move in and sweep the entire village clean of the rebel vermin. Arrest any suspected Alliance member and anyone who resists you! Do not rest until you have the entire town in your control and every suspected Rebel is accounted for. The Boss is offering a promotion to the soldier that apprehends the ringleader of the resistance, Tortimer the mayor. He is Priority One. There may be a reward for the capture of that storekeeper Tom Nook, too; be on the lookout for him and his twin brats. We also have information on a white dog named Totakeke, or K.K. Slider; arrest him as soon as you see him."

Upon hearing his name, K.K. whimpered and fainted.

"What are you buckets of bolts doing just standing here?! Phase Two has begun! _Begin the invasion!"_

Ratchet and Sonic saw what was coming next, and they pulled Clank and the unconscious K.K. into the shadows before an entire company of ACSP soldiers marched out the door. Hugging the walls, they followed them through the computer-controlled door and back to the locker entrance. They halted and waited for the Secret Police to leave the police station before creeping out. They revived K.K. in a thicket and tried to make sense of the situation.

"That army is too big for us to take out," the white dog moaned.

Ratchet laughed, "Ha! You kiddin'?! I can take 'em out with my R.Y.N.O.!"

"Not this time, Lombax. The total of active ACSP soldiers comes to 200 robots."

His green eyes grew wide, and he checked his ammo reserves. "You're right. I don't have enough R.Y.N.O. ammo for that many 'bots!"

"I'd better contact Copper and tell him to retreat to the tunnels and find the other groups pronto!" He pulled out a walkie-talkie and spoke into it. "Copper, this is K.K. Slider. Come in, Copper!"

"_I'm here, I'm here,"_ came the hound's voice over the radio. _"What's the problem?"_

"Pull back into the tunnels! I repeat: _pull back into the tunnels!"_

"_What for? Some kind of robot invasion?"_

"_**Yes!**__ The entire ACSP is marchin' your way!"_

"_**What?!"**_

"No time to explain! Just _get the heck outta there!"_

"_Where do I go?! Back to AnimaCity?!"_

"_No! _Anywhere but there! The police are goin' to invade it! There's not enough time for you to get there and warn them! They'll be on top of you before you can get everybody out! Get the other squads and get as far away as you can from their course!"

"_What about the town? We can't just abandon them!"_

"My squad will watch from a distance, but that's all we can do!"

Suddenly he felt a hand grip his arm, and he looked up and met the gaze of Sonic.

"Wait a minute, K.K.!" he said. "I have an idea! Gimme the radio!"

Wordlessly the musician handed him the radio, and waited to see what he would do.

"Copper, this is Sonic!" the blue hedgehog said into it. "Can you tell me if there's a quicker way to AnimaCity?"

"_Two other ways, actually: through the countryside or on a boat." _

"Which is quicker?"

"_The land, if you have a car."_

"Or supersonic speed?"

"_Yeah, sure…wait a minute, what are you getting at?"_

"I have a plan! Get the other teams and head to Canyon City's jetty! There are some motorboats there; take them and go to Paradisa, or better yet, the AnimaCity jetty! Take all the boats so you can load extra people onto 'em!"

"Sonic, what about us?" Ratchet interrupted.

"You'll go with them!"

"'You', not 'we'?" K.K. said with a cocked eyebrow.

Sonic explained the rest of his plan to the others, and also held the radio close so Copper could hear him. "I'm taking the way through the countryside on foot! I can get there faster than the 'bots or those boats! I can warn them in time!"

"_All right!"_ exclaimed Copper. _"We're on our way!"_ There was a click, and then static as he turned off his radio.

"You sure you can make it, Sonic?" Slider asked as he took the walkie-talkie from him.

The hedgehog smirked back. "I'm sure."

"Do you even know the way?"

"I rode with Tails in the _Tornado _part of the way here, and we passed over this area. I know the way!"

"All three of us wish you luck on your run, Sonic," Clank said.

"Thanks, I'm gonna need it. _Adios!" _

Sonic sped away into the night, and the remaining three ran over to the jetty and began prepping the boats for launch. About five minutes later, Copper and the rest of the company returned. The other groups had gotten their searches done right before Copper had called them and informed them of the situation. They all boarded the boats and raced away from Canyon City in a desperate attempt to reach AnimaCity before it was too late.

* * *

At about the same time, Sonic was running through forests, over ditches, across bridges, and even over fences. His mind was racing almost as fast as he was. If he was going to warn the town, he had to be brief and to the point. He couldn't stop and explain the whole story to every animal that asked him! He had to find Tortimer, and quickly! But he couldn't just ignore the refugees; they were in danger just as much as the Animal Alliance. What could he do to warn them?!

As he jumped onto the AnimaCity Train Station's platform, it dawned on him. He ran frantically to Nookington's, where he knew Tom Nook would be staying. He shouted the shopkeeper's name until the raccoon's head peeked out of the second story's window.

"Sonic! What in the world—"

"Tom! Find Tortimer and tell him to begin evacuating the Allies to Paradisa _now!_ _The robots are coming!"_

"_What?!"_

Sonic didn't wait to explain. He darted away to the Post Office and banged on its door. Porter answered it.

"Oh! Sonic! Where's everybody else?"

"No time! Get everybody out of the Post Office pronto! There's gonna be an invasion!"

"_Huh?! Eeeeeeeekkk!!"_ The monkey attempted to run for his life, but Sonic grabbed him.

"_Keep your cool! _You've gotta get those animals out first! Take them to the Wishing Well!"

Once again, he left without explaining anything. By now he had a good idea of how to warn everyone in the fastest way possible. He ran through the town, shouting at the top of his lungs, _"The robots are coming!"_ Lights in houses came on everywhere he went with the news, and terrified animals came out of their houses and ran for the Wishing Well.

Sonic's final stop was at the Museum. He pounded heavily on the door and shouted for Blathers. The owl eventually answered while rubbing his eyes; he had been taking a nap.

"Wot wot? What's all this?"

The boys, SpongeBob, Patrick, and Tails had been awakened by the noise, and they were also at the door. Tails' face lit up when he saw his best friend. "Sonic! You're back!" he exclaimed.

"You okay, Sonic?" asked Spike. "You look like you've run a 1000-mile marathon…ten times, in your case."

Sonic was indeed a little winded by his run, and was bending over on his hands and knees, breathing heavily. "…I came…to warn you guys."

"Warn us?" said SpongeBob. "About what?"

Patrick grinned stupidly and asked, "Are the dinosaurs attacking?"

"Shut it, Patrick," Spike said with a glare.

"What?! Are the robots attacking the city?" Jimmy said. He only meant it as a joke, but when Sonic looked at him seriously, he froze and gulped. "I guessed right, didn't I?"

Tails' eyes widened. "Uh oh."

Spike slapped his forehead and groaned, "Oh great."

"Yipes!" yelped SpongeBob.

Patrick whooped and clapped his hands. "Yay! Dinosaurs!"

Blathers, now fully awake, could only squawk, "Oh my…"

"Everybody's meeting at the Wishing Well," said Sonic. "Come on!" He grabbed his sidekick's hand and pulled him along. The others raced after him.

They found pandemonium at the meeting. Tortimer was on his stand again, trying to calm the crowd of terrified refugees. Tom Nook stood behind him, and his sons clutched his legs. When Sonic walked forward, people stepped out of his way, and he made it to the mayor.

"This better not be a joke or a false alarm, sonny," Tortimer said, his face grim. "These animals are all worked up."

The blue hedgehog shook his head. "I wish I was joking, but I'm not. Ratchet, Clank, K.K. and I heard the Secret Police Chief order his robots to surround the city. They're going to arrest every animal suspected of being an Ally and anyone who gets in their way."

"Where are the others?"

"On their way here by boat. Copper and the rest of the company should be with them."

The tortoise stood up and said loudly to his comrades, "All right then! We'll need to move all the agents onto Paradisa and even move them somewhere else if necessary. Let's git some supplies and weapons to fight back with! We don't want them buckets of bolts jumpin' on us!"

Suddenly there were loud gunshots, and bullets whizzed over their heads. The crowd dropped down to the ground almost in unison, and the heroes and the Allies looked toward the hills. Many gasped in horror.

An entire army ofrobots had surrounded AnimaCity, with their guns ready. The police numbered exactly 200; the Animal Alliance was greatly outnumbered. There was no escape.


	19. Chapter 18: Hide and Seek

Chapter #18: Hide and Seek

The crowd of animals cowered in fear at the sight of the army, and many held up their hands in surrender. Tortimer, Tom Nook, Blathers, and the heroes ducked into the crowd to avoid being spotted. A sneaky-looking black wolf wearing armor—a spy for the secret police—stepped out from the robot horde to address the animals.

"Citizens of AnimaCity, you have brought this invasion upon yourselves by bringing Rebels of Big Boss's empire into your homes. The Boss had no choice but to sweep this town clean of the Rebel scum. If everyone cooperates and there is no violence on the Rebels' part, then no one will be hurt. So, will we have to fight to take control of this city? Or will you surrender without needless bloodshed?"

The crowd whispered intently, wondering what to do: should they surrender to ACSP control or fight to the last man? Tortimer knew what had to be done, for he had been in this situation before. He gathered his friends and the hero gang together.

"There's no use fightin' 'em," he whispered. "It'll only lead to unnecessary bloodshed. They've got us outnumbered."

"But if we do that, they'll capture you guys!" Tails protested, his namesakes twitching nervously.

The mayor gave him a wink. "Not if we hide from them first. Ya see, I'm gonna send one of my police officers up there to give the answer. But I'll have him request that no arrests are made tonight, and we'll be safe for the moment. We'll stay with the crowd and find some nice hiding places in our buildings that nobody else knows about!"

Sonic nodded. "Not too bad of a plan. You sure it'll work? And where are _we _gonna hide?"

"There's a secret room in yer old livin' quarters."

"Our house? But that was destroyed!"

"Not anymore," Tom Nook replied. "I rebuilt all of my houses, with help from Tails and the boys."

"Our own little surprise," Spike remarked, folding his arms.

"We even moved in some furniture to make it look better!" his cousin added.

Tortimer continued, "The ACSP know who y'all are 'cause of Resetti, so yer gonna hafta be careful. I'll have a villager move into the house and hide ya."

"But we can't hide here forever. We'll eventually need to sneak out of town," said Tom.

"What about Copper K.K., Ratchet, Clank, and the rest?" Sonic interjected. "They'll be here any minute, and the 'bots will get them!"

The mayor scratched his chin and thought hard for a moment. "They're gonna be a problem. I think the only way we're gonna help 'em is to have someone wait for 'em and sneak 'em outta town. That's all I've got."

Tom Nook rubbed his forehead like he was getting a headache. "But whom do we send?"

Spike stepped up. "Jimmy and I can go."

Tortimer frowned. "It's a dangerous job, but…if yer so sure about it…all right, then. Let's send out the officer."

A minute later, a chocolate Labrador nervously left the crowd to parley with the army of robots. After licking his lips and clearing his throat several times, he said in as loud and clear a voice as he could, "We will surrender on two conditions. One: we are allowed to return to our beds as you establish control here."

The wolf nodded. "This is acceptable."

"The second is that you do not make any arrests tonight." The army leader frowned at this, so the dog added, "We have had enough terror tonight; your raids would only cause more."

It was obvious that the wolf was reluctant, but he answered, "Fine. The Secret Police will not make any arrests tonight. However, anyone seen wandering outside after 10:00 will be apprehended and questioned. You are all dismissed." (A/N: It was about 9:15 then.)

The crowd sighed in relief and dissipated. Tortimer, Nook, and four of the heroes left for Acre B-3. Spike and Jimmy went with a crowd to the beach and hid in a thicket that had a perfect view of the jetty. Five minutes later, the fleet of boats pulled up, and the boys told Copper, K.K. Slider, Ratchet, and Clank everything. The police dog ordered the company to hide the boats, and the foursome followed the boys back to Acre B-3. Tortimer told the two dogs to smuggle all the Allies that had been captured before onto a train and take it out of the town. They nodded and left the house.

When they were gone, Tom led the heroes up to the second floor and showed them the false wall he had built into the back of the room; the room was the same size as the bottom floor, but the false wall made it look smaller. It was made of the same material, and bookshelves were lined up against it. A panel was at the bottom, hidden under a writing desk. The panel was made to look like the back of the desk, and it lifted upwards. They had to crawl on their hands and knees to reach the secret room, which was the same size as the other part of the room. It was padded with thick carpet to silence any footfalls in the room, and there were some cots and sleeping bags on the floor, and a green pantry and a sink in one corner.

"It took quite a bit of work, but it was worth it," said Nook as he walked across the secret room. He pounded on the false wall to listen for any hollow sound. "It'll take years for Big Boss to find this one…hopefully."

Sonic glanced about the plain room and began tapping his foot. "We really oughtta be helping out. I can't stand being cooped up in a secret room all day."

"Me neither," agreed Ratchet, "especially with Patrick in the same room."

As if for emphasis, Patrick randomly exclaimed, "Pickled peanuts!"

Tortimer sighed and folded his arms. "Would ya rather be out in the open where the 'bots can see ya and git caught?"

The Lombax commando and the blue hedgehog both shook their heads with small sighs. Then Spike asked, "Will the animal living in here know we're here?"

"Yes, he will," the tortoise replied. "I've talked with him and made sure he was willing, 'cause we don't want anybody gettin' caught and spillin' the beans on everybody else."

"Beans?! I love beans!" Patrick cut in. Ratchet quickly dispatched him with a clunk on the head with his Omniwrench.

"The green pantry in the secret room is full of snack food; you'll need to eat yer meals in here. We've also arranged a buzzer system so that if somebody who doesn't know about the secret room comes in here, the villager will alert ya before they come up to the second floor. When ya hear the buzzer, y'all will hafta scramble into the secret room and take everythang, and I mean _everythang_, that's yours inside. We'll have some drills tomorrow, but I won't tell ya the exact time."

"Tortimer, one last question," Ratchet asked. "Where are you and Tom gonna hide?"

But the mayor only shook his head and said, "The less ya know of our hidin' spot the better, sonny. G'night, fellers!"

Tortimer and Nook left the house, and the gang went into the secret room and fell asleep.

* * *

The next morning, the heroes awoke to loud banging on the secret panel, and SpongeBob and Patrick huddled together in fright. Sonic motioned for everyone to be silent.

"Open up in the name of the Secret Police!" a voice shouted.

The gang was wide-eyed, but they said nothing and didn't move. After about fifteen seconds, the shouting stopped, and the panel slid open. A brown horse in an eight-ball shirt came in with a big grin on his face. "Guess I fooled ya good, didn't I?" he said.

The group breathed again; this was one of the drills Tortimer had mentioned. Then said tortoise and Tom Nook came inside, also grinning.

"And ya passed!" Tortimer announced.

SpongeBob perked up. "We did?"

"This was a test to see if everybody would keep silent if the ACSP really did come and find the secret room."

Jimmy scratched his head, a little puzzled. "Wouldn't they barge inside instead of just banging on the panel?"

Tom chuckled and replied, "That's one reason why I made the door small; the robots can't get in! Only animal agents can!"

The eight heroes exchanged impressed looks; they hadn't thought of that.

"Now that the drill's been done," Tortimer continued, "I need to make an introduction." He gestured to the brown horse. "Gang, this is Buck. He'll be stayin' here."

"Howdy," Buck said, waving one hand (err…hoof?). The group uttered greetings and returned his wave.

"Hey, Tortimer, Nook," Ratchet said, "whatever happened to Copper and the others?"

The raccoon sighed. "There's good news and bad news with this. Good news is they got away safely; bad news is their escape alerted the Secret Police, and now they're goin' to search the entire town for us."

Spike frowned in worry. "Will you guys be safe?"

"Not for long, I'm afraid. I think we're going to need to leave tonight."

"Where will you go?"

"Out of this county, probably," Tortimer answered with a shrug. "It would be best not to tell y'all 'till we know fer sure if yer comin' with us."

"What about all the Allies that are still here?"

Tom looked down at his feet and shook his head. "They'll probably have to escape on their own. Tortimer and I are being hunted, and we could get in trouble if we organize a great escape."

During the whole conversation, Tails and Clank had been deep in thought. Then an idea came to them, and they whispered their ideas to each other. Presently Tom noticed this.

"Is something the matter?"

The fox and robot shot each other one last glance, and then the latter responded, "The two of us have devised a plan to smuggle out the rest of the Alliance."

Tails then took over. "It's simple: we just get everyone over to the train station. Porter can load them up and take them to safety, like you guys did with Copper and the rest!"

Everyone stared at the pair in surprise, and Tortimer mulled it over for a moment, then smiled.

"Not a bad idea, fellers. In fact, it just might work! That wolf guy leadin' the robots has called fer some supplies fer both the animals and themselves. He wants Porter to pilot the trains and make sure the goods are delivered. The Chief also wants 'im to ship some crates of destroyed robot parts from the police station." Ratchet snickered at that part. "Maybe we can pack some of our men into the crates! The rest can sneak inside while the guards are distracted!"

Nook shook his head, also smiling. "It looks like we've got ourselves an escape plan. We just need to gather everybody together and work out the details. We'll come back at noontime!"

The mayor and the storekeeper left the house, and Buck and the heroes got breakfast. When they were finished, the group got out some board games and started playing them. Tails and Clank played a game of chess. Sonic, Spike, Jimmy, SpongeBob, and Buck played Monopoly, and Ratchet was stuck with Patrick in a game of Go Fish.

But, pretty early into the Monopoly game, Spike rolled the dice and moved his piece across the board. "All right! Madison Avenue! Hey, Sonic, gimme one of those houses! I'm buyin' this place!"

But when the hedgehog looked for the houses, he found nothing. "Uhhh…there aren't any houses in here."

"What?! No houses?!"

SpongeBob's face turned red. "Oops, I almost forgot. Patrick and I played this the other day, and he ate 'em all."

The other players turned and stared at him. Buck's mouth dropped open, and he exclaimed, "He _ate _the houses?!"

The sea sponge nervously shrugged. "He'll eat anything."

His buddy's voice carried across the room. "Pickled eggs! Spinach-flavored ice cream! Week-old cheese!" The Monopoly players made nauseated faces.

"Oh well, so much for Monopoly," Jimmy said, and he threw his paper money back into the game box.

After cleaning up the game, they checked on Tails and Clank, who were locked in a fierce chess match. Both of them had lost the same amount of pieces, but it looked like Clank had the advantage; he had captured Tails' queen piece, and he still had his own. He processed all the possible moves and tactics in his head before moving in to attack Tails' king. (A/N: For those of you who don't know how chess works, this move is called a check.)

The little robot set a rook (the piece that looks like a castle) a few spaces to the right of the opposing king. "Check."

Tails was silent for a moment. The rules of the game said he had to move his king out of check (out of danger) by either moving the king or moving another piece to shield the king, and he couldn't move any other piece until then. Then he saw an opportunity to make him and Clank even. He moved his rook a few spaces in front of his king, taking the king out of check. Clank hid his surprise at this foolish move and captured the piece with his queen.

The fox smiled, and his twin tails twitched in delight. Clank noticed, and realized that he had walked into a trap.

Clank had taken the rook and put Tails' king back into check, but he had exposed his queen to another one of Tails' pieces: the knight, the piece that resembles a horse and moves in an "L" shape. The fox snapped up Clank's queen and grinned at his cunning tactic. Clank slapped himself for not seeing it earlier.

In a few minutes, it was all over. The capture of Clank's queen set off events like dominoes. Tails' army surrounded Clank's, and the fox put the king into check, or should I say…

"Checkmate!" the fox kid declared proudly, setting his lucky knight in the correct spot for the finishing move.

Checkmate is when the king is in check but there is no safe spot he can move to, and…you guessed it…the opponent wins, in this case, Tails.

Sonic grinned and slammed his sidekick's back. "Good job, Tails!"

Clank, of course, wasn't a sore loser. He reached across the chessboard (a bit tough, considering his size) and shook his opponent's hand. "Good game, Tails. Foxes really are cunning animals like the stories say."

Tails grinned back. "Thanks! You did a good job, too! For a while I thought you would beat me!"

Suddenly two voices were heard from across the room.

"Come on, Patrick, you've _gotta_have that Jack!"

"Go fish!"

"_Grrrr…"_

You probably know by now that they were Ratchet and Patrick, and that the Go Fish game had turned into a disaster. Ratchet had already gotten a pair of Jacks and had the third in his hand, and now he was looking for the final card.

"No Jacks!" Patrick repeated, one of his teeth sticking out in a goofy fashion.

"You've _gotta _have it," the commando fumed, "'cause I've gone through the whole stinkin' stack and it isn't there! Gimme your deck!"

But the starfish twisted away from Ratchet and held his card hand out of his reach. "My cards!"

Spike quickly came over. "Ratchet, that's probably a bad idea. Remember Booker and the bone?"

Ratchet immediately stopped what he was doing and sat back down. "Good point."

SpongeBob, knowing he would probably have better luck, also came over and asked politely, "Patrick, can _I _see your cards?"

Patrick handed over his card hand with a happy face. "Llamas!"

The yellow sponge glanced at the cards, and then turned to Ratchet. "Nope, he doesn't have any Jacks. Sorry, Hatchet."

"It's _Ratchet,"_ growled the Lombax. How many times did he have to say that?!

Sonic looked through the stack of Go Fish cards, and he looked up at them with a confused expression. "It's not in here either."

"I'll bet it's been missing before y'all even started the game," Buck interjected. "That happens sometimes."

"That can't be! I checked before we played! There were four Jacks!" Ratchet told him.

As they sat and thought, Spike realized where the missing card probably was, and he slapped his face. "I think I know."

Everybody turned to him, and his cousin asked, "Where is it?"

The red-haired teenager turned to SpongeBob. "SpongeBob, remember how you said that Patrick would eat anything? Does that include cards?"

SpongeBob didn't need to answer, because just then Patrick took a bite out of an ace. He chewed on it for a few seconds, then mumbled, "Mmm, tasty." Then he tore into the rest of the ace.

Jimmy slapped his forehead. "Case closed." Ratchet glared intently at Patrick, with one eye and his right hand twitching.

Suddenly they heard the doorbell ring (they installed a doorbell, okay?), and the gang threw all the board games and cards into a kiddie bureau and ducked into the secret room. To their relief, it was Tortimer, Tom Nook, Porter, K.K. Slider (who had stayed behind instead of going with Copper), and Blathers. They gathered on the second floor to begin the discussion of the escape plan. Tortimer asked Tails and Clank to explain, since they had come up with the plan.

"The best course of action," Clank began, "would be to hide all endangered agents in secret rooms all over the town until nightfall. Then we can smuggle them onto a train just like you did with Copper and the others. Can you tell us where there are some secret rooms, Mr. Mayor?"

Tortimer pulled a map of AnimaCity out of his shell and laid it on a pine table, and they gathered around it. He pointed to several locations. "We have secret rooms in the Post Office, Nookington's, the Museum, and the Able Sisters' Shop. Those are official hidin' spots. Some villagers have unofficial places in their houses—Daisy, fer example. The folks sometimes have as many as ten agents in their homes. Most of these are good places, but some might be easy to find. The official secret rooms can hold as many as fifteen at once each, and the police will have a very hard time locatin' 'em, I guarantee that."

Tails nodded and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Okay, so we probably should use the hiding places at the Post Office and the store. We'll sneak agents from the rooms to the station. We'll hafta go in small groups, though, so we don't attract any attention."

"Porter, when does your train leave here to pick up the supplies for AnimaCity?" asked Clank.

The monkey pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and glanced at it. "Sometime before curfew, about 6:00," he replied. "I won't be going anywhere safe though; I'm going into Big Boss's territory for the crates. I'll come back after dark, around 8:30. The shipment of robot parts will go to the nearest recycling plant, which is close by Alliance territory. Also, I'm shipping supplies for that factory; some animals are forced to work there, and they need food and clothes. That's when we should smuggle everyone on my train."

Tails continued, "When the train comes tonight to drop off the supplies and pick up robot parts, we load as many animals as we can into the empty crates."

"We've gotta be careful though," Porter pointed out. "The guards at the plant might get suspicious if they see too many crates."

"We have taken that into account," the little robot said. "It is probably best if we only smuggle out known and suspected agents. Members of whom the police are not aware may remain here longer, hopefully without being detected."

"There's one other problem: I can't make any extra stops. The overseers at the factory expect me to be right on time, so if I'm late for no good reason, they'll begin to think I'm up to something."

K.K. Slider sighed and rubbed his forehead. "That bites, 'cause then you can't drop us off at any safe town."

Ratchet suddenly sat straight up in his chair and interrupted, "I think I know how to solve the problem!"

Porter turned to him, surprised. "I thought Tails and Clank were the only ones doing this."

"I'm volunteering. Anyway, why don't you stage a robbery?"

"Kinda like those old Western movies?" Jimmy asked.

The commando shrugged and answered, "I have no idea what you're talking about. I was thinking of the train robberies out in Metropolis on planet Kerwan." Everyone but Clank gave him confused stares.

Clank pointed out, "But the train is not shipping money, or anything of monetary value."

But Spike caught on to the idea. "What if the 'robbers' wanted food and supplies instead of money? They can actually stop you near a safe town and take the crates of agents!"

Ratchet grinned. "Great idea, Spike! Not bad for a human!"

"Hey!"

Porter returned them to the subject by saying, "That could actually work! I've been robbed before, and some agents do that stuff!"

"But who are the robbers going to be?" asked Tom Nook.

"Why not Copper and the others?" K.K. Slider suggested. "They're close by Pine Ridge, and they could sneak us over the border too!"

Clank continued, "We can mark the crates of agents so they know which ones to steal. But, like Porter said, they cannot steal too many crates, or else the robots will become suspicious."

Tortimer clapped his hands together and exclaimed, "All right then! It looks like we've got ourselves a plan! Now fer assignin' roles! I think Tom, K.K., Blathers, an' I should git on the train as well; like I said before, we're bein' hunted, and this is the perfect chance fer us to git outta here!"

"I'll contact Copper and let him know about the plan," K.K. volunteered.

Blathers stood up. "I guess I must go gather up the agents and assign them hiding places."

Clank climbed up onto the table. "I believe that Ratchet, Spike, and Sonic should hide the groups in the secret spots and smuggle them out, one at a time."

The blue hedgehog nodded in approval. "I'll take the groups from Nook's shop."

"I can do the Post Office," Spike said.

Ratchet twirled his wrench. "I'll load them."

Jimmy exclaimed, "What are the rest of us gonna do?!"

"Jimmy," his older cousin warned him, "you guys could get in trouble. You should stay here and wait your turn for loading." The younger boy folded his arms and pouted.

The mayor finished up the meeting with the time for the plan. "Let's start movin' before the 8:00 curfew; it'll still be dark, but we won't git in trouble fer bein' out too late."

Suddenly there was loud banging on the door, and the discussion halted. Buck quietly walked down the stairs to open the door while the rest of the group grabbed their belongings and ducked into the secret room. Sonic was last, and he heard robotic voices saying that they were searching the house. He shut the secret panel quickly but quietly and told the others what he had heard. They didn't move and were silent.

The gang heard the sound of heavy footsteps coming up the stairs, and the horse talking about his living quarters. The footfalls moved about the room, and there were sounds of furniture being moved around. They heard rapping on the walls; the robots were testing the walls to see if any were false. Then the footsteps faded away, and the voices left as well. Only when Buck opened the panel and told them it was safe did they breathe a sigh of relief and crawl out.

Tortimer removed his hat and wiped sweat off his forehead. "Whew! That was a close one! Looks like yer secret room passed the test, Nook."

"I was worried they would find it for a moment," the raccoon confessed, fiddling nervously with his tie.

K.K. was a little more optimistic. "Now we know this spot is pretty safe. We can make this secret room an official hideaway. Maybe some of us can stay here for the escape."

"Good idea!" said the tortoise. "The group here can hide in this house until it's time to leave." Then he turned to Buck. "You should come too, Buck. They might find out ya helped us git away, and they'll arrest ya."

The horse nodded. "I think yer right, pardner. I'll come."

After working out the details of the plan, the meeting was dismissed, and the animals left to begin preparations for the escape. The gang of heroes did some preparing of their own: Sonic exercised with some of the equipment kept in one of the bottom floor's extra rooms, Spike practiced his Stun Club moves with a punching bag, and Ratchet checked, cleaned, and tested his weapons. Clank and Tails decided to do another game of chess, and SpongeBob and Patrick played Go Fish…with a different deck of cards, of course!

But none of them were fully aware of the danger they were walking into…

* * *

_Version 2 Author Notes:_

Just a really quick disclaimer here. I do not own the game Monopoly; I forget who does...Parker Brothers? And I hope my explanation of Tails and Clank's chess match was clear enough.


	20. Chapter 19: Escape

Quick author note: This is my favorite ACHR chapter because of the gigantic, nail-biting cliffhanger at the end. Enjoy! (big, crazy, evil grin)(maniacal laugh)

* * *

Chapter #19: Escape

The heroes played some more board games with Buck until dusk. When the clock chimed 8:00, Sonic, Ratchet, and Spike crept out of the house into the growing darkness. They sneaked over to the station and hid in some bushes, where they found an "X" written on the ground in the thicket; Porter had marked this spot to be the hiding place for the agents. Sonic and Spike left Ratchet in the bushes and went to Nookington's and the Post Office, and found the Animal Alliance agents ready for them. They hid in the secret rooms with them and waited for the train to arrive.

Ratchet, obviously, was the first to see the train pull in. He remained silent, knowing that some robot guards were coming to pick up the supplies. Sure enough, a squad came with boxes of robot parts, burnt wood, and other rubble from the bombing. They took the provisions without much talk and left. Later, the wolf leader came by and reminded Porter of his other errand. The monkey nodded his head nervously at his words, and promised that he would deliver the parts, the rubble, and the supplies to the recycling plant safely. As soon as they were gone, Ratchet contacted Tortimer, who was at the Post Office.

"Tortimer, this is Ratchet. We have a green light."

"_All righty! We'll be right over!"_

In minutes, the mayor, Spike, and fifteen Allies reached the bushes, and they waited for Porter to open the cargo car, which was a sign that it was safe to come. When he did, groups of five agents crept out of the thicket and went inside the car at a time, and the primate helped them into some boxes. When all but Tortimer, K.K. Slider, and the two heroes were packed, Ratchet called Tom Nook over. The process repeated itself, and all the crates of supplies became packed with Allies. Spike went back to pick up the other heroes and Buck, and they packed the horse in, too. The only people that weren't packed were the eight heroes. When everyone was ready, Porter went into the locomotive car and started the engine. With a blast of the whistle, the train left AnimaCity with its hidden cargo.

For a while the heroes sat and talked in the darkness of the cargo car. Eventually the sea creatures, Jimmy, and Tails fell asleep, and Sonic, Ratchet, Clank and Spike talked about the robbery, which they had each rehearsed in their minds. They had unanimously agreed that Copper and his gang of "robbers" would switch the track so Porter had no choice but to go near Pine Ridge. Then they would pull guns on him, beat him up a little, and steal the crates carrying the Allies. The boxes would be loaded onto a dump truck and taken across the border, where the agents would be taken out. Spike said the plan was foolproof, but Clank insisted that no escape plan was ever 100 perfect. Although he never said anything to the others, Sonic had a bad feeling in his gut that something would go wrong in the plan. Ratchet just shrugged it off and checked his weapons out of habit.

Suddenly the train stopped, and there was shouting.

The voice of Porter was heard. "What the…?!"

"Don't move! This is a hold-up!"

The second voice was easily recognizable; it was Copper. The heroes couldn't see it, but he and his partners (who were all dogs) were playing their part well; they wore identical black suits and ski masks so no one could identify them. One grabbed Porter, handcuffed him and gagged him. When the monkey attempted to fight, two of them beat him up. He sank to the ground in defeat.

The dogs unlocked the cargo car and started opening crates to see what (more like who) was in them. When Copper saw Tortimer in one box, he closed it back up and ordered for it to be carried out. Soon all the crates carrying Alliance agents were removed and placed in the back of a dump truck. The boxes were tied down with rope and covered with a tarp. Several of the gang hopped into the truck bed with their booty, and the vehicle drove away down a path out of sight.

Copper had stayed behind to inform the heroes. After they woke up the sea creatures, Jimmy, and Tails, he led them out of the car into the forest. He turned to them with a smile and said, "You guys had a pretty good idea, and it worked! Everything is going well as planned! The truck is headed for the border, and I've got another car comin' to take the rest of us outta here! We've got nuthin' to worry about now!"

I hate to say it, but that was a jinx.

No sooner were the words out of his mouth when they heard a train whistle, and it wasn't from theirs. They ducked into a thicket and waited to see if the train would pass.

It didn't. It, in fact, was following Porter's train. It was a cargo train just like Porter's. But its cargo was an entire division of Secret Police soldiers.

Copper groaned and held his head in his paws. "Oh great, I've been jinxed…again!" Spike shushed him.

The train stopped behind Porter's, and a sea of robots flooded out of the cargo car and surrounded the locomotive. The wolf leader and a certain cloaked figure stepped out of the engine car.

This caused Ratchet to also groan. "Not _him _again. Why does he hafta ruin everything?!"

"_Shh!"_ whispered Spike.

"Ratchet, please, do not reveal our current position to the enemy," Clank pleaded also in a low tone of voice.

The Secret Police Chief trotted over to Porter's train and discovered the monkey lying on the floor, cuffed and gagged. He had a robot officer remove the cuffs, and he took out the rag in the primate's mouth. Then the wolf bombarded poor Porter with questions.

"What happened here? Why did you take the wrong way? Where are the supplies?"

"I'm…sorry, sir," panted the monkey conductor. "Some robbers forced me onto this track and they took all the supplies for the factory except the robot parts. They loaded them onto trucks, I think. There were too many of them! I couldn't stop them!" He got down on his knees in front of the Chief and whimpered, "I beg you to forgive me!"

The figure only folded his arms. But the wolf spoke for him. "We will if you tell us what they looked like."

"They all wore black suits and ski masks, so I can only tell you they looked like dogs."

He curled his lip. "I heard that that mongrel Copper and some others escaped this way; maybe he did it. Officer #465!" One robot with the corresponding number marched up to him and saluted. The wolf barked, "Take your men and search the area! Follow any tire tracks you see and report to me your findings every ten minutes!"

The soldier saluted again, and then began relaying orders to the rest of the army. Soon the robots were divided up into units, and they went in all directions.

Copper realized what danger he and the heroes were in and began to panic. "We need to get outta here! They'll find us if we just sit here!"

Sonic asked, "Where do we run?!"

"Pine Ridge isn't too far from here! We can make it on foot if we move quickly and quietly."

Ratchet stood up and exclaimed, "Then let's _go!"_

"_Shh!"_ Spike said again.

In return the Lombax glared and snapped, "Would you cut that out?!"

"I would if you would quit bein' so loud!" the red-haired human retorted angrily.

Thankfully, Sonic broke up the quarrel by shoving them towards the forest and whispering loudly, "Guys, just shut up and _move!"_

They darted away into the thick forest, hoping no one heard or saw them. Unfortunately, Officer #465 did.

"Moving life-forms detected. One identified as canine species."

"It's Copper! _Get them!"_ the wolf bellowed.

Realizing they were being chased, the gang ran faster along a hidden path they had found. They suddenly came to a river.

"Oops, must've taken a wrong turn," said the police dog.

"How are we gonna get across?!" Jimmy asked, nervously glancing over his shoulder.

In reply, Tails pointed at something and said, "Hey! There's a log over there! Let's cross!"

The banks of the river rose up to great heights and became a small canyon, and at one point there was an old log lying with both ends on each side; that's what Tails had pointed at. But Sonic wasn't enthusiastic about crossing.

"I dunno, Tails, it looks unstable…" he said, shifting on his feet.

Ratchet folded his arms. "Sonic, would ya rather be caught by the ACSP or fall into a river trying to cross it?

The hedgehog cupped his chin in one hand and pretended to think hard. "Hmm…let's see…"

"_Sonic!"_ everyone yelled.

"I'm just kidding! I'd rather take my chances with the river!"

They ran to the crossing and carefully walked across the log one at a time. When it came to be Sonic's turn, however, he hesitated.

"Come on, Sonic! You can do it!" Tails encouraged him.

Spike shouted, "Hurry before the robots come!"

"Don't be such a scaredy-cat and cross it!" Ratchet said impatiently.

"Just don't look down!" advised Jimmy.

Upon being called a scaredy-cat, the blue hedgehog began the crossing. However, he had waited too long; some of the robots had caught up. One saw Sonic and fired at him with its blaster. He had enough sense to get down, and he held onto the log tightly. He happened to glance down at the swiftly flowing river below him, and felt woozy.

"Guys! I'm lookin' down!" he yelped.

Ratchet brought out his N90 Hurricane and called out, "Hang on, man!"

The Lombax returned fire to the robots, hoping that he could keep them occupied until Sonic crossed the river. Suddenly one robot did an unexpected and probably foolish thing: it stepped onto the log bridge, putting its full weight on it. There was loud snap of wood, and the log broke in two and fell into the river.

But it took Sonic with it.

"_Sonic!"_ Tails screamed in horror, but only a loud splash answered him.

Ratchet destroyed the remaining robots, and Copper pulled out his binoculars to search the water. "I see him!" he exclaimed. "He's grabbing onto a piece of wood!" But then he groaned. "The current is pulling him into the rapids!"

"Clank, do you think you can use your Thruster Pack and take me down there?" Ratchet asked.

His robot partner turned around as far as he could from his spot on the commando's back and replied, "I could, but I am uncertain if I could remain balanced if you attempt to pull him out of the water. And I do not know if I can handle both of your weight."

"Well, we've gotta do _something!" _He looked around, hoping for inspiration, but then he realized something. "Where's Tails?"

The others shrugged; in their panic, they had not noticed him slip away. But then the fox's voice in the canyon answered him.

"I'll save you, Sonic! Hang on!"

They turned and saw him flying into the canyon, calling for his best friend desperately. Copper exclaimed, "He can probably carry Sonic! He'll handle it!"

Tails flew as fast as he could go directly for Sonic, who was beginning to lose his grip on the log. When he came right above him, he held out his hand. The hedgehog grabbed him, and his sidekick began pulling him out of the water. Suddenly Jimmy noticed something.

"Aaah! More robots!" he cried.

Copper saw the reinforcements and shouted at the top of his lungs, _"Sonic, Tails, __**look out!"**_

Unfortunately, they heard their friends' warnings too late; shots whizzed by their ears, barely missing them. But one blaster shot hit Tails' hand, and he lost his grip on Sonic, causing him to fall back into the water. Then another made impact with one of his tails, and he also fell.

Ratchet slapped his forehead. "Oh great! Now we've got to rescue _both_ of them! C'mon, Clank! We'll have to risk the weight limit!"

Before they left, Copper handed him a radio so they could hear each other, and the Lombax handed out his N90 Hurricane and Annihilator to the others so they could hold off the robots. Then Clank nodded grimly and activated his Thruster Pack, which used jets instead of rotors like his Heli Pack. Ratchet dove down into the canyon and scanned the water for Sonic and Tails. He saw the latter first and snatched him out of the water, and returned with the waterlogged fox in his arms. Spike slammed his back several times, and Tails coughed up the water.

"Thanks, Ratchet and Clank. Did you get Sonic?" he asked between coughing fits.

"No," the robot replied, "but we will right now."

The galactic duo soared back into the canyon and searched the river. There was no sign of Sonic anywhere.

"I wonder if Tails was being literal when he said Sonic sinks like a rock," Ratchet mumbled.

"I hope not," his partner said.

"Me neither. I don't wanna hafta swim in these rapids."

Copper suddenly cried out; he had spotted Sonic further down the rapids. Ratchet saw him as well and rocketed forward, calling the hedgehog's name. He found him clinging to another piece of driftwood, but he was weaker than before; it was an effort for him to reach out and grab Ratchet's hand. But before the Lombax could lift him out of danger, there was more gunfire from the enemy, and a shot hit Sonic in the arm. He cried out and disappeared under the river's surface.

Ratchet threw up his hands in frustration. "Oh come on!"

"Ratchet, hurry! You don't have much time!" Copper yelled over the radio.

"For _what?!"_

He was answered by the sound of roaring, and it was growing louder by the second. With horror everyone realized what it was.

_A waterfall._

Tails frantically shouted Sonic's name, and soon Ratchet joined him. Copper saw him again and said, "There, Ratchet! By the large rocks!"

But they were too late this time. Before Ratchet could even reach him, Sonic disappeared over the falls without even a cry for help.

The Lombax hung his head and returned to the gang. Even Patrick was silent. Tails only stared toward the waterfall with a distant look on his face, mumbling his friend's name.

Copper saw this and whispered to the commando, "He's in shock. We'd better find a place to hide and calm him down."

Their moment was interrupted by more blaster fire and more robots. Everyone ducked behind trees or into bushes…all except Tails. Without a word, he suddenly snatched up Ratchet's N90 and held the trigger button down, letting out a devastating barrage of fire at the soldiers. None of them survived. When the last one was obliterated, the fox dropped the weapon, fell on his knees, and wept.

Clank shook his head sadly. "They were such close friends. If Ratchet were killed, I would do the same thing."

"Uhh, Clank, robots can't cry," Jimmy pointed out.

"I forgot that, but you understand what I am trying to say."

SpongeBob sniffed and blubbered, "Poor Sonic…who knew water could be so cruel?!" Then he too became a waterworks. Even Patrick joined in.

The others quietly shuffled away to give them room, and Jimmy began wiping his own eyes. Ratchet didn't look at anyone and stiffly watched the river with a frown, inwardly wrestling with guilt; after all, he figured in his head, it was all _his_ fault.

Copper, who was also a bit shaken, was the first to cast aside his sadness and took charge of the situation. "Look gang, I know this is bad and all, but we can't just sit here and bawl; we still have those robots after us. We should make for Pine Ridge. My friends are there, and there's food and shelter."

The gang of heroes nodded their heads, and Ratchet, who was feeling guilty for not reaching Sonic, gestured for Copper to lead the way. Tails felt too weak to walk, so Spike had to carry him on his back. They walked on for about ten minutes before they saw the lights of a town. They walked faster and were about to run out of the forest when Clank detected robots very close by. They stopped for a moment, crept to the very edge of the forest, and got a perfect view of Pine Ridge and the horrible scene that was taking place.

The ACSP had gotten to Pine Ridge first.

The town was crawling with robots; the entire division (minus the soldiers the gang had destroyed) was searching in every building and taking arrested animals to Porter's train, which had come into the station with the Secret Police's locomotive. The prisoners were being loaded like cattle (some of them actually were cattle) into the cargo car, and the Chief and the wolf looked on, the latter wearing an evil grin.

Copper bit his lip. "I hope Booker, Tortimer, and Nook are okay."

"Most of us are," said a familiar voice. The gang whirled around to see Tom Nook walking towards them. His business suit was torn, wrinkled, and stained, and there was a great amount of worry in his eyes.

"Nook! Where is everyone else?" questioned the dog.

"Most of them are safe on the other side of the border. But I can't find Tortimer, Booker, or my boys. If they were caught…" he shivered and held his head in his hands, "I won't be able to live with myself…"

"Wait a minute…your boys?!" exclaimed Spike. "You tried smuggling out Timmy and Tommy?!"

The raccoon hung his head. "I did. I was worried about their safety, you see, and I didn't want to leave them at home."

Ratchet inwardly kicked himself for not remembering the Nooklings; he had seen them climbing into one box back in AnimaCity, but the detail hadn't registered in his mind.

Spike gently put Tails down and said, "Jimmy and I can sneak into town and look for them, Mr. Nook. We can't let those robots find them!"

"What about the rest of us?!" SpongeBob asked, biting his lip.

"You guys can stay here and keep an eye out for Tortimer and Booker."

Copper nodded. "Good thinking. Go on, Nook, find your boys. We'll stay here."

"Th-thank you, Copper," Tom stammered. Then he followed Spike and Jimmy back into the forest.

Only moments after they left, something new was happening back in the town square. The cargo car was sliding shut, having nearly been filled with prisoners, when Officer #465 called out to the Chief and the wolf.

"Delay deployment! Imperial Enemy #1 is in custody!"

The wolf opened his mouth to speak, but a different, more sinister voice beat him to it. "Bring him forward."

This drew the gang's attention (since they were well within hearing range), and they watched as a dozen robots came out of the shadows in a box formation. Someone was between them, struggling, but they couldn't see who it was.

Copper, however, had a suspicion. He moaned and buried his face in his paws. "Tortimer was called the most dangerous animal in the country; that's gotta be him."

"We must be certain that it is indeed the mayor," Clank insisted. "Utilize your binoculars."

The dog did just that, and focused hard…

…And caught a fleeting glimpse of the prisoner.

His face turned several shades lighter, and he let the binoculars fall back onto his chest (he had put the strap around his neck).

Everyone stared at him with deep worry, and Ratchet asked, "What's wrong?"

Copper gulped. "…It's not Tortimer."

"What do you mean it's not Tortimer?"

Clank got off his partner's back and zoomed in with his own binocular vision. When he saw what Copper had seen, he too froze. "Oh dear…"

In the square, the Secret Police Chief also saw whom his robots had brought in. He chuckled evilly and sneered in his low, sinister voice…

"Well, well, well, look what we have here! We meet at last…

"…_Sonic the Hedgehog."_

* * *

(eye twitches) Hee hee hee...betcha didn't see that comin'. (really loud, insane laugh)(has heart attack and faints)


	21. Chapter 20: Leave No Comrade Behind

_Version 2 Author's Notes:_

I don't know if anyone noticed, but I fixed up the "Sonic's death" scene in the previous chapter. Patrick's silly outburst was badly timed, so I took it out and added more angst to it. I hope my readers think that it turned out better.

* * *

Chapter #20: Leave No Comrade Behind

The gang froze, and SpongeBob gasped. In the town square, the robots moved a bit more, and they could now see perfectly.

It _was _Sonic. He was dripping wet and had his hands cuffed behind his back. Two robots had a good grip on his arms so he wouldn't get away. He probably wouldn't try anyway; he looked worn out. But there was defiance in his emerald green eyes.

At first, Tails was stiff from this second shock of the day, but then he slumped against a tree behind him in relief. Clank got off his partner and patted the fox's arm (as he couldn't reach much higher). "He is all right," he said to assure him.

"If you call half-drowned, soaked to the bone, freezing cold, and under arrest all right," Ratchet muttered. But inwardly he felt like a big load had been lifted off his shoulders; at least Sonic was alive.

Copper scratched his head in puzzlement. "But why did that 'bot call him 'Imperial Enemy #1'? Tortimer is Big Boss's worst enemy."

"Looks like things have changed," said a voice, and everyone whirled to see Tortimer standing behind them.

"Mr. Mayor!" the police dog exclaimed.

"What do you mean, sir?" asked Clank.

"Resetti knows all 'bout Sonic, doesn't he?" the old tortoise pointed out. "He probably told The Boss, so now Big Boss has him labeled the most dangerous rebel. Now let's hush up an' keep watchin'." They followed his suggestion and returned their gazes to the scene in the Pine Ridge plaza.

The Secret Police Chief took a few steps closer to Sonic, who tensed and glared at him.

"For such a running legend as yourself, you were very easy to capture," the cloaked figure sneered.

The hedgehog curled his lip and retorted, "You're just lucky I almost drowned in the river or I would've given you the fight of your life." But then he let out a sneeze and shivered; the river had been cold, and the night wind and cool temperatures weren't helping any.

The wolf snarled, "So full of yourself, eh? Well, some jail time in Big Boss's dungeon ought to cure that."

The Chief held up a hand to silence him, and then told Sonic, "I might ask The Boss to take it easy on you if you tell me the names of your friends and where they are. I offer this only to a special few, so consider yourself lucky."

But Sonic only put on a blank look. "What friends?"

The wolf angrily gave him a kick in the stomach, causing the hedgehog to groan loudly in pain and fall to his knees. In the rest of the gang's hiding place, Tails cringed and made a move forward, but Ratchet held him still by the shoulders.

"You were seen with several other foreigners, rat!" the wolf barked, sharp teeth showing. "Don't play stupid with us!"

Once again the Chief interrupted him. "This is your last chance, hedgehog. Tell me who your friends are and I'll tell the interrogators back home to take it easy on you."

Sonic glared fiercely at him, then, gathering up some nerve, he spat at the cloaked leader's feet as a reply. His reward was more kicks in the gut from the wolf.

"…Fine then," the Chief said, disgust and contempt evident in his voice. "You'll have to go the hard way. I'll make sure my friends have no mercy when you're brought in for questioning. Officers, load him onto the train."

The robots half-dragged Sonic, who struggled every inch of the way, into the cargo car with the rest of the frightened animals. Then, on the Chief's signal, the Secret Police train, with a few cargo cars from Porter's train attached to it, pulled out of the station. With the invaders gone, the town was very still and silent. The heroes, Copper, and Tortimer crept out of the bushes to the train station and watched the shadow of the train disappear into the night. But then they heard voices, and saw Tom Nook, Spike, Jimmy, and Booker (whom they had found hiding) come out of a small shed.

"We saw them loading up Sonic," the older human said, his fists clenched. "Those hunks of junk…"

"How about you? Did you find everyone?" asked Copper.

"We found Booker, as you can see," he replied. "But…we couldn't find the Nooklings." He gestured to Nook, whose head was as low as his chest. Everyone felt sympathy for him.

"So what do we do now?" Jimmy asked. "Go after Sonic?"

Tortimer shook his head. "It's too dangerous. All the animals that go to The Boss's outpost in Tombstone are never seen again."

"I can't help but think that the town's cemetery has some new tombstones," muttered Copper, and the mayor elbowed him in his side. "Ow! I was just thinking!"

Ever since the train had left, Tails had been silent. He still stared after the train, which was now long gone. Then he turned to the others with a determined look in his eyes.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to rescue Sonic."

"I hate to say it, son," said Tom Nook, "but Tortimer is right; it's too risky."

"Well, I'm not going to hide somewhere and let them hurt him! I know they will."

Ratchet stepped up next to the fox. "I'm with Tails. One rule of being a commando is to leave no comrade behind. I'm not about to go back on that rule."

Clank also nodded. "It is cowardly and selfish to not aid someone in need when you are able to, even if it is risky. We should at least try."

Spike shrugged helplessly. "Copper has a point too. We can't just waltz up to the base, knock on the door, and say, 'We want Sonic back'!"

Suddenly a new voice cut in sharply, "Of course you can't, kid." The speaker came out of the shadows to their left, and they saw a lavender pelican wearing heavy makeup and a dark purple vest. The animals recognized her in an instant.

"_Phyllis!?"_ Nook and Copper exclaimed in unison. Then the latter added, "What are _you_ doing here?!"

Spike recalled their interrogation of Resetti, and pulled out his Stun Club. "She works for Big Boss!" he declared. The other heroes also faced her in attack poses.

Tortimer's face fell, and he asked calmly, "Is this true, Phyllis?"

The pelican sighed, and it was a frustrated and maybe even sad sigh. "Partially. I work for the Secret Police, or at least used to."

Copper's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I was getting paid to work for them, and I was fine with it until they took my sister." The sad look returned to her face for a split second, and then she shook her head. "Anyway, I changed my mind and unofficially became a double agent. I write some anonymous notes and mix up ACSP papers on occasion. While I was doing this, I discovered many of Big Boss's secrets."

"Like what?" the police dog asked.

Phyllis snapped at him, "Quit interrupting and I'll tell you!" He folded his arms and was quiet, so she continued, "One thing I heard The Boss say was that he had built a secret passage into his fortress just in case the place was attacked. He wants to have an escape route if his empire is overthrown. But I have no idea where the passage is hidden. But I _do _know of someone who does: Big Boss's most trusted animal spy, _Crazy Redd."_

Tom Nook's eyes widened. "My rival?! A spy for Big Boss?!"

Copper rolled his eyes. "It doesn't surprise me."

"Redd knows where the passage is and where the most important prisoners are held," Phyllis said, "so you might be able to get info on where they're keeping your friend. I heard the Chief say Redd is meeting with one of The Boss's advisors tonight in the town of Boston; it's a bit of long walk there, though. You can catch him if you're really careful; he's a sly character. Of course, you already know that."

Ratchet grinned and tucked his Omniwrench into one pocket of his suit. "Well, now it looks like we have a way to rescue Sonic. We've just gotta find Crazy Redd, find the passage, infiltrate Big Boss's fortress, release Sonic, and get outta there!"

"It's still a tall order," Copper pointed out.

Patrick cocked his head. "Like twenty feet tall?"

"But perhaps not impossible," said Clank.

Tortimer tapped his cane on the ground (wow, he still has that thing?) in approval. "It's settled; we're gonna help 'im. He's done a lot for the Alliance, and we owe it to him to set him free." Nook nodded his head, Copper and Booker saluted, and Phyllis only rolled her eyes.

Jimmy thrust his Stun Club into the air and whooped, "Yeah! Let's do it!"

"_Yay!"_ SpongeBob shouted, doing a happy dance.

"Alpacas!" his starfish friend joined in.

Tails smiled as he watched his teammates accepting their new mission, and then looked toward the west—the direction where the train had gone for Tombstone.

_Hang on, Sonic. We're coming,_ he thought. _…All of us._

* * *

The ACSP train, with the cargo car from Porter's train attached to it, rumbled across the countryside. Inside one car, the crowded and terrified animals lay in almost complete darkness; the only light was a small window high up in a corner of the car. But no one tried to move toward the window for two reasons: the car was tightly packed, and a lone prisoner occupied the place directly under it, and no one wanted to disturb him.

Sonic was glad nobody bothered him, because he didn't feel like talking to anyone at the moment. He was busy wondering where his friends (especially Tails) were, how they were doing, and if they knew he was alive but in the clutches of the Secret Police. He tried to sleep, but disturbing thoughts, a hard floor, and a bad cold kept him awake.

As he lay curled up in a ball in the car's corner, Sonic felt two small pairs of hands shaking him. Then two frightened voices whispered to him.

"Mr. Sonic, sir?"

"Sir?"

The hedgehog uncurled and found himself face to face with Timmy and Tommy Nookling. He gave a start and sat up, and they scrambled forward and hugged him tightly. "What the…what are you guys doing here?" he exclaimed, shifting into a more comfortable position.

Tommy looked up at him, eyes shining with tears, and whimpered, "W-we got separated from Papa and…and got caught."

"…C-caught," echoed Timmy in a cracked voice. Then he burst into tears. His twin sniffed, ready to follow suit.

Sonic's facial expression softened, as did his voice, and he held the pair closer to him. "Hey now, don't cry. It's gonna be okay. You've got me; nobody's gonna hurt you."

The raccoons stopped crying, but were still scared. They continued to whimper, shiver, and hold on to him. For a moment he struggled to think of something to do, and all he could come up with was to tell them what had happened to him.

After going over the waterfall, Sonic had somehow dragged himself to shore and had lain there for what seemed like hours, too exhausted to move. It had taken a little while for someone to find him. He had seen a fox and a weasel scouting the area, and had called out to them. The minute he had told them who he was, they had cuffed him and called for a robot squad.

"I shouldn't have been so stupid," he muttered to himself, but suddenly he let out a loud sneeze. It startled the Nooklings, but they found it funny and laughed. He smiled, glad that they were in higher spirits, and began to join in. But when he laughed too hard, he went into a nasty coughing fit. This time the coons were serious.

"Are you okay, Mr. Sonic? Do you have a cold?" Timmy asked.

He frowned and bit his lip; the last thing he needed was a cold. "I dunno…I might." But he smiled at them. "But I can handle it. What's important right now is that you two stick with me, okay? I won't let any 'bots hurt you."

Both of them smiled and nodded their heads at the same time. Satisfied, Sonic lay against the wall of the train car and closed his eyes. Both Timmy and Tommy curled up next to him on opposite sides, not minding that his fur was still a bit damp. Soon all three of them were fast asleep.

And the train chugged on into the night, taking them to a far worse prison…


	22. Chapter 21: Outfoxing a Fox

Chapter #21: Outfoxing a Fox

In the town of Boston, the villagers were under a new reign of terror—one that not even Big Boss or the Animal Alliance knew about. They were not being thrown into prisons or forced to work. This was a different kind of terror: blackmail.

Two shady individuals somehow knew everything there was to know about the townsfolk, and used the information to their advantage. They backed their victims into a corner and put on the pressure until they broke and begged for them to not tell anyone their secrets. Ironically, many Alliance agents and spies for Big Boss were under these blackmailers' thumbs, but they were too afraid to tell anyone about it.

One such agent found himself in the clutches of one of the two masterminds. The poor rabbit was sitting stiffly in a chair, watching a bluish-gray weasel wearing a leather business suit pace around him in circles.

"Listen, buddy, we're tryin' to help ya. Nobody needs to know you're an agent, 'specially not The Boss. Ya need coverage. Not tomorrow, not next week. Now. Get it? Bang!"

"Coverage? It's blackmail!" the rabbit protested.

"It's a matter of opinion, bud. Now, are ya gonna sign this form? 'Cause if ya don't, I'm free to sell ya out. And then…bang! It's curtains for ya!"

"F-f-fine! J-just give it here!" He swiped the paper the weasel was holding out and signed his name. Then he handed it back. "So you're not gonna tell anybody?"

The weasel gave him a sly smile. "As long as you keep up your payments, bud."

Of course, he neglected to mention one little condition written on the form in very fine print; he and his partner couldn't give out the information freely…but they had the "right" to if they were _paid_.

As he walked out the door of the rabbit's house, he picked up his suitcase, grinned, and said, "Bang! Thank ya for your business!" But, as soon as the door was shut and he was out of his "client's" sight, his grin turned wicked, and he snickered to himself.

_Another fool and his Bells are soon parted,_ he thought.

He took a path through a dense forest area of Boston, and then came to a clearing. In it, a teal tent with a yellow leaf symbol on the top was set up. A campfire was crackling in front of the tent, and sitting next to it on a log was a red fox wearing a blue apron. In one hand he had a pan, and in the other he stirred the contents of the pan with a spoon. He quietly hummed a tune to himself and kept his eyes focused on his very early breakfast. But when he heard the weasel approaching, he looked up and grinned.

"So, Lyle," he said, "how was our new client? I was about to go after ya; we usually don't do deals so close to dawn."

Lyle set his suitcase down and replied, "I pinned him at 20,000 Bells a month."

"Think he'll pay it?"

"For a month or two. Then he'll probably get cozy an' smug an' think he can miss a payment. Then…_bang!"_ He smacked a fist into his open paw. "We sell 'im out to the Secret Police for three times his coverage!"

Crazy Redd chuckled. "You're probably right, partner."

The weasel got a sneaky look. "You willin' to bet on that?"

"Nice try, but I've learned not to gamble with you. You cheat."

"So do you."

"Touché."

As the pair laughed at one another, they didn't feel the eight pairs of eyes watching them from shadows of the forest…

* * *

"Okay, so we found Crazy Redd. Now what?"

Spike, the speaker, turned to face the other heroes and Copper as they hid in the bushes on the edge of the clearing.

The dog rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Well, it looks like this isn't going to be as easy as we had thought. We had no idea Lyle was with him."

"You mean that weasel?" asked Jimmy, pointing at Lyle.

"Yeah. They were business partners before Big Boss. I guess they still are now."

Ratchet stood up and crept closer to the pair's camp. "I say we jump 'em. We outnumber them eight to two."

"I dislike sparring with you, Ratchet," Clank interrupted, "but that might not be a very wise course of action. We should not foment a disturbance in the settlement nor attempt to obtain information out in the open where observation is not difficult."

The Lombax scratched his head. "Tails, please translate."

"He said that we shouldn't make noise or question them outside, 'cause someone could be watching us," the fox said.

"Oh." He frowned and looked at his robot sidekick. "You've got a point."

"Maybe one of us should get in a disguise and try to make him think we're on his side," Spike suggested. Then a grin slipped into place. "And I think we all know of the perfect person for the job."

All eyes turned to Tails, and he shifted nervously on his feet. He didn't like their grins one bit.

"Uhh…guys, why are you looking at me like that?"

The red-haired teen didn't answer him, and instead turned to Copper. "Copper, we need to pay a visit to some of those shops in the plaza. It's time to play dress-up."

Tails gulped.

A few minutes later, Crazy Redd and Lyle, as they were eating some soup and sandwiches, heard rustling in the bushes nearby. The former quickly got to his feet, but the latter was a little slower, since he was still chewing on his food. The weasel watched his partner's nose and ears twitch as he tried to identify the source of the noises.

"Somebody out there?" he asked. But Redd only shushed him and carefully stepped closer to the edge of the clearing where the noises were coming from. Because they were focused on that side, they didn't see or hear a figure walk up behind them.

"Excuse me…"

"_Aiiyeeeeee!!"_ Lyle screamed, leaping a foot in the air; the person had been right behind him. He ran for the tent and dove through the covered entrance.

Redd, on the other hand, wasn't so startled. He whirled around to face the newcomer and studied him closely.

He was a fox like him, probably only eight years old. He was dressed in a dirty, stained #1 shirt and had a red cap on his head, with holes in it for his ears.

The shady dealer folded his arms with a frown and snapped, "What's a kid like you doin' out here at night? Ever heard of curfew?"

The kit blinked innocently. "They're doing that here too? I didn't know that; I just got here. My name's Tod. Are you Crazy Redd?"

"Yes, I am."

"And who's that?" The fox pointed at the pair of eyes peeking out of the tent.

"That would be Lyle, my business partner. Lyle, get your sorry tail out of there! You scared of kids?"

Mumbling under his breath, Lyle came out of the tent and eyed the younger fox suspiciously; he couldn't help but think that his tail was a little too thick for such a young age. But he didn't say anything to Redd, since he was now on his bad side.

"So," Redd continued, "why did ya come see _me?"_

"Tod" rubbed his neck nervously and replied, "Well, I'm an orphan, and the only relative I have is a distant uncle who travels and trades valuable items."

This sent the shady fox into deep thought. _Hmm…I __**do**__ remember hearin' 'bout some kinda nephew…_

The kit shifted on his feet and said, "I like travelling. If you don't mind, I'd like to join you."

"I dunno, kid…I only have enough supplies for two people, an' I'm low on cash…"

"That's okay. I've got some money."

He pulled a bag of Bells from his left-hand pocket. Crazy Redd's and Lyle's eyes nearly popped out of their heads.

"_60,000 Bells?!"_ cried the weasel. "Where'd a little shrimp like you get all that dough?!"

Tod looked around the clearing like he had something to hide, and then cracked a sly grin. "Worked for some, found some, and stole half of it."

Redd's face split into a big grin. "Now _that _sounds like a nephew of mine! Come on into the tent!" He led his supposed nephew into the tent. Lyle followed both of them and put down the tent entrance flap, grumbling about their visitor.

_This little beggar's gonna be big trouble. I can just feel it…_

In the forest, the other heroes and Copper had watched the whole scene, and were choking back their laughter.

"Oh man, they fell for it!" Jimmy whispered loudly, and he slapped his knee and held his sides.

SpongeBob giggled, "I can't believe it!" He lost his self-control and did his laugh. (A/N: If you've seen his show, then you probably know what laugh I'm talking about.)

Patrick frowned and cocked his head. "I don't get it." But no one paid him any attention.

"I'm impressed with Tails," Spike remarked. "He hid his extra tail pretty well. Redd and Lyle didn't see it."

Clank agreed, "His acting was flawless."

"Let's get closer!" the younger human said eagerly.

All of them tiptoed to the tent and listened in. Crazy Redd had just finished showing off his merchandise to "Tod". Now they were sitting in lawn chairs by a potbelly stove. Suddenly the younger fox noticed a black suitcase hidden behind one of Redd's trunks. While the dealer was tending to the stove, he got up, walked over to the case, and picked it up. He began to open it.

_What's in this case?_ he thought to himself.

Suddenly the suitcase slammed shut, and Tails just barely got his fingers out of the way. He looked up to see Lyle glaring at him.

"This is _my_ case, you nosy little furball," he growled.

With a yelp, the kit ran away from him and hid behind Redd, who only caught his partner's harsh words.

"Leave 'im alone, Lyle," he warned sharply.

"He was peekin' into my stuff!" the weasel protested.

"He won't do it again. Now beat it."

"Wha…?"

"I said beat it! I want some privacy with my nephew!"

Shaking with anger, Lyle stomped out of the tent and into the forest, muttering threats for revenge…

Ratchet and Spike pounced!

Before the blackmailing weasel knew what was going on, he had been battered to the ground, tied up, cuffed, and gagged…and his attackers had hardly made a sound.

The Lombax commando and human proudly stood in front of their catch. The former said, "He's not Redd, but he'll do for now. Maybe he knows a few things too."

Copper nodded. "We'll take him back to our hiding spot. You two return to the tent. When it's time to go in, give us the signal."

The two did just that, and heard Crazy Redd talking some more to Tails over some sandwiches and chips.

"I've never trusted him. He's always talkin' about sneakin' behind The Boss's back."

The kit's ears pricked forward, and he looked up from his bag of chips. "You mean Big Boss? You guys work for him?"

"Yup. I like his style of government, really. Anyway, I found out the other day that Lyle's been collectin' names of some of the Boss's agents so he can rat 'em out to the Animal Alliance. I want to tell Boss, but that sneak's been stuck to me like glue; I haven't had a chance to be alone so I can make the call. But now I think I can; he doesn't like you, so as long as you're around, I can do what I need to."

Tod's eyes widened, and he absorbed the information like a sponge. Redd smiled inwardly as he ate his ham sandwich, glad that he could use him as a tool. Once he got that sniveling weasel off his back, he could keep all of the blackmail money for himself!

"I've already made some arrangements. Tonight at 10:00, I'm supposed to meet with one of the Boss's head officers at the beach in this town. I'm gonna tell him all about Lyle's blackmail scheme and his plans for my fellow agents."

"But won't Lyle get suspicious?" Tod asked, reaching into his bag of chips for more.

"Nope, 'cause I've got a cover story for 'im. I told him I'm gonna collect our reward for turning in the hedgehog we found near Pine Ridge."

His "nephew" stiffened and choked on a chip. Redd gave him a confused look, and Tails tried his best to recover. He gulped down some water from a plastic bottle and croaked, "Sorry. It went down the wrong pipe. …What hedgehog?"

"A weird-lookin' blue one; called himself 'Sonic'. What kinda stupid name is that, eh?" The shady dealer laughed; for some reason, he found the whole thing funny.

Tails laughed with him, but he had no heart in it. "Heh, heh…yeah, that's, uh, really weird." He shifted nervously in his lawn chair. "What's gonna happen to him?"

"He's been taken to The Boss's fortress in Tombstone, where all the prisoners go; I hear The Boss might even interrogate him personally." He chuckled sadistically. "Poor, poor sap. I doubt he'll last for more than three days."

The younger fox's stomach tightened into a knot, and he lost his appetite. An image of his best friend starving in a cold, dark dungeon came into his mind, and he nearly lost his self-control.

Just outside the tent, Ratchet and Spike were watching the two foxes through a rip in the tent fabric. They saw their friend buckling, and knew that it was now or never. They signaled to the others, who ran up to the tent as fast as they could. Then Ratchet crept up to the tent's entrance and tossed a smoke grenade inside. There was a small explosion, and the tent was filled with smoke. They heard coughing, and all of them charged inside, armed with their various weapons, and shouted, _"Freeze!"_

That is, everyone but Patrick, who declared, _"__Happy Mother's Day!"_

In between coughs, Crazy Redd demanded, "Wha…what's goin' on?!"

Copper came up behind him, put the fox's hands behind his back, and cuffed them. "Crazy Redd, you're under arrest."

His voice brought the dealer to his senses. "Copper, you mangy mutt!" he snarled. "Let go of me! You've got nuthin' on me!"

"On the contrary: 'Tod' here can tell us everything we need to know."

"Wha…Tod, what does he mean?"

When the smoke grenade had exploded, Tails had taken a breathing mask from his right-hand pocket and had put it on. When the smoke cleared, he took off his mask and turned to the trapped dealer with a frown.

"First off, my name isn't Tod; it's Miles 'Tails' Prower." He reached back and removed the band that was holding his two tails together. He moved both of them so Redd would get a good look.

The fox gaped. _"__What the...?!"_

He unbuttoned the shirt and took it off as he continued, "Second, I work with the Animal Alliance."

Redd's eyes narrowed, and he curled his lip in disgust. "Why you little whelp! Lyle was right about you!"

Suddenly Tails removed his cap, threw it to Jimmy, and glared back at Redd, with his ears flat against his head, his hands clenched into fists, and his blue eyes glimmering fiercely. Everyone, even Ratchet, backed away from him.

"And lastly," he growled, "Sonic is my best friend, and you had better tell me where he is or _else."_ For emphasis, he punched one fist into the other open hand.

Nobody expected Tails to be so demanding, but hey, you'd be upset too if you were face to face with the person who had turned in your best friend!

For a moment Redd's mouth was too dry for him to retort, but he managed to stammer, "You'll…you'll never get away with this."

Ratchet rolled his eyes. "Can it, Redd. You're comin' with us."

"I'd _love_ a can of sardines!" Patrick quipped.

Redd stared at him. "Are you sane?"

Grinning stupidly, the starfish replied, "Nope!"

While shooting an annoyed glance at Patrick, Ratchet and Spike grabbed his shoulders and led him out of the black tent, with the others close behind them.

* * *

Many struggles and Omniwrench strikes later, the gang came to the two-story house Tortimer and Nook had rented for them. The "hunting party" tied Crazy Redd and Lyle to chairs much like they had done to Resetti several days before.

Jimmy yawned and rubbed his eyes. "Spike, I'm gettin' tired. Do we hafta interrogate _both_ of them tonight?"

"You won't get anything outta us!" Crazy Redd barked, struggling in his chair. Lyle only watched their captors with a scared expression.

Ratchet glared and fiddled with his wrench. "Oh yes we will. We want to know everything about that fortress in Tombstone. And you'd better answer, or you'll regret trying an alien commando's patience."

Lyle gulped, but his partner only glared back at the Lombax with a curled lip, showing his teeth. Then Redd spat at Ratchet's feet and said again, "You'll never get away with this."

Spike stepped up to the fox with his Stun Club in one hand. "Question Number One: Where exactly will Sonic be held in the fortress?"

He received no answer from Redd, so he looked at Lyle. But the weasel only stammered, "D-don't look at m-me! I don't know anything!"

But Tails didn't believe him. He stomped over to him and looked him in the eyes. "Lyle, when I was with Redd in the tent, he talked about turning on you and handing you over to Big Boss."

"H-he _what?!"_

The dealer's jaw dropped, then he growled to Tails, "You double-crossin' mongrel!"

But the younger fox ignored him and focused on Lyle. "He was going to rat you out so he could keep all the reward money for Sonic to himself." His blue eyes flashed at the mention of his friend, but he didn't make further mention of him.

Now angry, Lyle turned to his former partner and yelled, "You traitor! I'll bet you wanted all the blackmail money too! You…you…" Then, to the heroes, "Okay, I'll talk."

"Don't you dare, Lyle!" Redd shouted, but Ratchet grabbed his muzzle and held it shut to keep him quiet.

Now free to talk without hindrance, Lyle looked at Copper, who held a notepad, and began.

"Ya see, your friend's location depends on his importance to The Boss. Animals caught doing petty crimes are kept in the lower dungeons, and Allies are placed in higher levels. Political leaders have special quarters. Bang! Make sense so far?"

They all nodded.

"But your friend's probably not in any of these. Every now and then The Boss locks up prisoners in his guard towers, 'specially if they won't give him information; that's where he is, I'll bet my bottom Bell. Bang!"

Ratchet rubbed his chin and nodded his head. "Very good answer. Question Number Two: Does the fort have any weaknesses?"

"Not any major ones. It's guarded 24/7 by 'bots, see, and in some places ya need security codes to get in. There are cameras in every building, and the main building has a top-notch alert system. The fences are the latest in technology: electrocuted, barbed wire, invisible…ya name it, they got it."

"What about Big Boss's secret passage?"

Redd's eyes widened, but his weasel cohort only blinked.

"Don't gimme a blank look; I know you know—"

Patrick suddenly jumped in and interrupted, "That you know this guy who knows this guy who knows this guy's _cousin_ who knows—"

"_**Patrick!"**_ everyone else shouted angrily.

"Alpacas."

The commando glared at the starfish for a few more seconds, and then muttered, "Never mind." He turned back to Lyle. "Now, about the passage…" He let go of Redd with one hand and used it to hold his wrench above the weasel's head.

"Okay okay, it does exist!" Lyle whimpered. "There's a small cave in a cliff behind the compound. There's some kinda mechanism there that has a thumbprint scanner. Bang! That's all I know, I swear!"

"Will _your _thumbprint work on it?"

"N-no, but I think Redd's does!"

The fox tried to protest, but Ratchet's grip on his muzzle made it impossible. So Spike took Redd's paw and pressed his thumb on a glass. He gave the glass to Clank, who lifted the thumbprint onto an elastic glove (the kind that doctors use). Clank stored the glove for later use.

"Okay, there's one more question, Lyle, and then we're done: who exactly was Redd supposed to meet for your reward money?"

The weasel only sputtered, "Bang! I…I don't know! He never told me, and I don't think he knows either!"

"What he told me was that he's supposed to meet him on the beach tonight at 10:00," Tails broke in.

Ratchet nodded. "So we need to check the beach around that time."

"But it's only 5:30 in the morning!" Jimmy exclaimed, pointing at a classic clock. "What are we gonna do between now and when that guy comes?!"

"…Good question." Suddenly the commando heard strange noises, and turned around. He grinned, pointed, and replied, "Maybe we should follow their example."

SpongeBob and Patrick had fallen fast asleep in their red armchairs, and were snoring loudly. The others laughed.

"What about these two?" Spike said, pointing to Redd and Lyle.

Copper stepped up. "Tortimer already made a few calls. I'll take them to the police station in a few hours. You guys should go ahead and get some rest; you've had a rough night. There are some bunk beds up on the second floor."

Taking his advice, the five heroes trudged up the stairs to the bedroom; Spike carried SpongeBob up, and Ratchet lugged the heavy Patrick. After the two put the sea creatures together in two full bathtubs, they claimed their beds and went to sleep.

The last to do so was Tails. After the lights went off, he watched his teammates as they drifted off into dreamland. He lay on his back to follow suit…but then stopped and gazed at the empty bunk above him.

…_Sonic…I hope you're okay…_

The young fox eventually closed his eyes and fell into a quiet but troubled sleep.


	23. Chapter 22: The Boss's Little Helper

Chapter #22: The Boss's "Little" Helper

When morning came, the heroes took some R&R in Boston. It wasn't that big of a town, but the animals were friendly to them. Copper, as he had said, took Crazy Redd and Lyle down to the police station and locked them up. Tom Nook bought the gang fishing rods, shovels, slingshots, and bug nets so they could amuse themselves in the town. The whole time, however, Tails was very quiet; for him, it was hard to get over the absence of Sonic. The others also felt it, but were able to enjoy themselves nonetheless.

For a while, all the group did was fish at the lake and exchange life stories. The two exceptions were SpongeBob and Patrick, as they didn't like the idea of fishing (being sea creatures) and preferred bug catching; they also occasionally went for a dip in the lake. Whenever Spike and Jimmy got bored, they would wander off to try and catch bugs with the sponge and starfish. In Ratchet's case, he had Clank set up some soda cans on a fallen log, and he would knock them down with his slingshot; even with a "non-lethal weapon", he was an excellent marksman. He and Clank also stuck around to keep Tails company. The fox was the only person to stick to his spot on the lake; he didn't seem to have the energy to do anything else.

For many of them, the day seemed to fly by quickly, and soon it was evening. Eventually the gang completely abandoned their posts at the lake and moved on to the beach. At first, only Spike and Jimmy went out into the open to act as scouts. They kept their fishing rods with them and took spots at the edge of the ocean, but their eyes combed the sandy beach for anything unusual. When they saw nothing, they signaled the others, and they too took up fishing places.

But this proved to be a distraction, for the fish were biting there better than they had in the lake. Tails was watching a small grove of palm trees, counting the coconuts on them out of boredom, when suddenly his fishing rod nearly flew out of his hands. With a gasp, he grabbed it and began to reel.

"You've got something big!" Jimmy exclaimed, and he tossed a horse mackerel he had caught back into the water.

The fish on Tails' line began to drag him close to the waves, and Ratchet leaped to his feet. He wrapped his arms around the fox's chest and pulled him back, shouting, "Keep reeling!" Tails did so, but the line suddenly slackened.

"Don't stop! Reel!" Spike told them, setting down his own rod, ready to help.

Tails kept reeling harder than before, and suddenly a red snapper broke the surface of the water a few feet from them. Jimmy gave a shout of triumph as Tails reeled it in all the way. The others gathered around to admire his catch.

Clank studied it with his scanners and stated, "This specimen is slightly larger than its normal size."

"All right, Tails! Good job!" Spike said, slamming the eight-year-old fox's back.

Tails smiled, proud of his catch, but the grin disappeared when the red-haired teen complimented him; he had sounded like Sonic. He sighed and replied, "Thanks. But…what are we going to do with it?"

"I believe red snapper is considered palatable in this region," answered Clank, "and is one of the most loved dishes in Animal Crossing cuisine."

Ratchet, Spike, and Jimmy stared at him in confusion. Tails also paused, and then asked slowly, "You mean…it's eatable, right?"

The little robot nodded. "Correct."

The two humans cocked their eyebrows. Spike said, "I've never had this kind of fish before, but…okay!"

"Let's go back to the house and cook it!" Jimmy declared.

All but Ratchet began to run back to the forest. The Lombax hesitated, mainly due to the idea of eating a foreign dish. How could something like that fish be edible?

Suddenly, a voice came out of nowhere.

"Hey, you!"

Ratchet's ears perked up slightly, and he glanced around the beach.

"Yeah, alien boy! Come here!"

It sounded like the voice was coming from behind him, so he turned around. No one was there. But the voice urged him on in that direction.

"Closer…"

Ratchet took three hesitant steps.

"Closer!"

Irritated, he took six steps.

"_Too close!"_

Ratchet took his final step, and the voice stopped. He looked around some more, but no one had been in sight the whole time the voice had talked to him. He knocked himself upside the head a few times and stuck his fingers in his ears to clean them out.

"Ratchet?" shouted the voice of Spike. "You comin'?"

He began to move back toward the forest. "Yeah, be right there!" he replied. "I was hearing things!"

But when his left foot hit the ground, there was a scream. He stopped and listened. No voice. He took another step, and there was another scream. He stopped and listened again. The voice was gone.

Ratchet glared at his boots. "This is starting to get annoying."

"Ratchet!" Spike called again.

"Coming!" he yelled back.

The commando began stomping back the way they had come, and there was no doubt about the screaming now.

"_Ow! Ouch!"_

Ratchet reached the others, who had come back a ways to meet him, and he made one last stomp with his left foot. The scream was louder than ever, and everyone else heard it.

"_**Yeeeeoooowwww!!"**_

"_Alright! What the heck is goin' on?!"_ he shouted loudly, throwing his hands up into the air.

"I think you stepped in something, Ratchet," Tails said, scratching his forehead.

The voice, now muffled, shouted, _"__Not __**in **__something! __**On **__some__**one,**__ you twit!"_

Ratchet lifted his left foot. A tiny, green creature with one red eye and two antennae was stuck to the bottom. The Lombax's eyebrows rose, and he peeled it off of his foot. It screamed in pain as he did so. He held it by its two antennae, and the others stared at it in puzzlement.

"Clank, can you scan that thing?" Tails asked.

The robot did, and told them, "I believe it is a type of plankton that resides in the ocean."

The creature struggled, moving its stubby arms and legs, and snapped, "I could have told you that, bucket of bolts! And you'll pay for stepping on me, alien scum!"

Ratchet rolled his eyes and replied sarcastically, "Oh, I'm so scared."

"Watch your mouth! Because of that your punishment is going to be _30 _lashes!"

"Save your breath, Tiny Tim. Tails, go get me a jar from our house." Tails nodded and, with his fishing rod and red snapper still in hand, he ran back into the forest.

"How _dare_ you call me tiny!" the green creature barked. "I oughtta increase the penalty to _100_ lashes! Open your mouth anymore, and I'll…"

It continued to threaten Ratchet, who sat down on a rock and continued the conversation by annoying the creature even more. Finally Tails returned with a jar with holes poked into the lid. The Lombax dropped him into the jar and put the lid back on.

"Who is he?" said Tails. But the gang could only shrug; they had no idea.

Spike suddenly got a sneaking suspicion, and checked his watch; it said 10:05. "He might be Redd's contact," he suggested.

The others gave him surprised looks, but Ratchet studied the strange creature and shook his head. "He's too small."

Suddenly they heard two familiar voices. SpongeBob and Patrick darted out of the forest, still wielding their bug nets.

"Hey, guys! Bug catching is awesome! It doesn't hurt like jellyfishing!"

The five cocked their eyebrows. Jellyfishing?

"Oh no, not these two morons," groaned the tiny green creature.

This attracted the attention of SpongeBob. The instant he saw the creature, he gasped and dropped his net, exclaiming, _"__Plankton!"_

"Looks like Clank was right," Jimmy said.

Tails' ears pricked up. "Hold on; is Plankton his name, SpongeBob?"

The yellow sponge vigorously nodded his head. "Yeah! Actually, his real name is Sheldon, but everybody just calls him Plankton."

Jimmy guffawed. "'Sheldon'?!" He burst into laughter; Tails and Spike choked back their own laughter, and Ratchet snickered. Plankton glared daggers at SpongeBob.

"Cease laughing, you little brat!" he demanded to Jimmy.

"So, you guys know him?" Spike asked SpongeBob.

Again he was answered with a vigorous nod. "He's always trying to steal the formula for the Krabby Patty!"

Ratchet cocked an eyebrow. "What's a 'Krabby Patty'?"

SpongeBob gaped at him. "You don't know?!"

"I'm from another galaxy; of course I don't know."

"It's only the best burger under the sea!"

For a moment there was nothing but silence, and then the Lombax turned and stared at Plankton with half-closed eyes. "…You keep trying to steal the formula for a _burger?"_ he asked.

Plankton waved his arms around angrily. "It's not just any stupid burger! It's a _Krabby Patty!"_

There was another pause. Then Jimmy simply said, "What a lame enemy."

"I'm not lame!" Plankton fumed. "I've tried to take over the world before!"

Spike rolled his eyes. "Yeah, we heard the story. You got your butt kicked by SpongeBob and Patrick."

"Grr…don't remind me."

Jimmy added, "Only a lame villain could get his butt kicked by a sponge and a dumb starfish."

"_I'm not lame!"_ he protested.

Suddenly SpongeBob frowned and moved forward, taking the jar from Ratchet. "What are you up to this time, Plankton?"

"It's none of your business!" was the angry reply.

Taking his guess from before, Spike said, "I'll bet you're workin' with Big Boss."

Drops of sweat appeared on Plankton's forehead. "Err…what makes you think that?"

The heroes exchanged glances; Plankton was their man. Ratchet began the questioning. "So, you're one of The Boss's advisors?"

It looked like Plankton was not going to talk, but the Lombax shook the jar, and the words poured from his mouth. "I just came to him about a month ago and asked him if he would lend me a robot army so I could take over the ocean. He told me he was conquering the world, but he'd let me have the oceans if I helped."

Jimmy scratched his head. "This is getting weirder by the minute."

"Let's show Plankton to Copper and Nook!" SpongeBob declared.

"Is Plankton a bug?" Patrick asked randomly.

"_I'm not a bug, you imbecile!"_ Plankton retorted.

"What's a bug?"

Ratchet shot him a glare. "Shut it, Peanut Brain."

The starfish cocked his head. "My brain's a peanut?"

"No, it's the _size _of a peanut," said Jimmy.

"What's a peanut?"

Suddenly a rock came out of nowhere and hit Patrick's head. He plopped onto the sand with an "Ouch." Everyone looked around to see who had thrown the rock. It turned out to be Tails. They stared at him in surprise.

The fox shrugged. "He was getting on my nerves."

Ratchet handed Jimmy Plankton's jar and helped Spike pick up Patrick. SpongeBob and Tails gathered up their fishing rods and bug nets, and the group trotted back to the house. They found Tortimer, Tom Nook, and Copper there, and told them everything that had happened.

"This is getting quite confusing," the raccoon said, staring at Plankton in the jar.

Copper folded his arms. "So, are we going to attack Big Boss's fortress or not?"

Ratchet shrugged. "I don't see why not; we got the info we needed. We just need to come up with a plan. I think we should sneak inside using Redd's fingerprint for the secret entrance, then get to the control room."

"Why the control room?" Spike asked.

"We can get a map of the base, a look at the security system and maybe even shut it down, and find out where Sonic is."

"I can download a map of the compound from the computer's database," Clank offered.

Tails stepped forward. "Once we find Sonic, what then?"

With a manic grin, the commando brought out his RYNO, and everyone stepped back. "Simple," he replied. "We blow the place to kingdom come!"

"If we deactivate the security system in the compound," added his partner, "then it is also possible for us to apprehend Big Boss and any of his advisors."

Tortimer brightened immediately. "That's a good plan!"

Spike nodded and extended one hand forward. "Let's do it!"

"All right! Some more action!" his cousin said. He brought out his Stun Club and put his free hand on top of Spike's. Smiling, Ratchet put away his weapon and joined the stack. Then he lifted up Clank with his other hand so he could join in.

Tails gave a wide grin and added his own. "Sonic, here we come!" he declared.

"Yipeeeee!" cried SpongeBob, doing a happy dance and then joining the group.

A pink hand came on top of this. "I don't get it."

Everybody turned to Patrick.

"What's a plan?"

Ratchet flattened his ears. "Not another word, Patrick."

"What's a word?"

All but SpongeBob turned and yelled, _"Shut up, Patrick!"_

He grinned. "Pickles."

"Never mind him," said Tails. He put his other hand on top of the stack and bent down.

Taking the cue, the others broke the stack of hands and whooped, "Let's _goooooo!"_

The heroes were prepared for their hardest mission yet…


	24. Chapter 23: Storming the Castle

Chapter #23: Storming the Castle

Because of Tortimer's connections, it wasn't hard for the gang to get a train in Boston. Of course, the conductor insisted that he only take them as far as the town closest to Tombstone: a tiny village called Medford. The Allies and heroes agreed and piled into one of the cargo cars. Soon the train was chugging along the track through the night.

The heroes sat in their car with its door open so they could watch the land pass by. Presently Patrick turned to Ratchet, which, as usual, triggered a hilarious event.

"Hey Hatchet…"

"It's _Ratchet_, you idiot," the commando snapped without looking at him.

But the starfish only grinned stupidly and dared to ask that age-old, annoying question…

"Are we there yet?"

With a heavy sigh, Ratchet turned to face him. "No."

But only a few seconds passed between them before Patrick asked again, "Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"_No."_

"Are we there yet?"

"_No!"_

"Are we there yet?"

Finally he just screamed in his face, _**"No! We're not there yet!!"**_

A long pause, and then, "…Are we there yet?"

"**Aaaaaaaaarrrrrrrggggghhhh!!"** The Lombax began banging his head against the wall, on the verge of going insane. The others watched, some with amusement.

But Patrick wasn't done. When Ratchet turned back to him, he resumed grinning and said, "Pass the mustard please."

He flattened his ears. "Idiot."

"You're supposed to say 'no'."

He blinked in surprise. "…Okay then, no."

The pink starfish gave a bigger grin. "Are we there yet?"

The alien commando twitched, and one hand began to reach for his Omniwrench. "Clank, can I throw him off the train…please?" he asked, with a tone that resembled one of a crazy person.

Clank folded his arms. "Ratchet, you know the answer to that."

"You're right, I do…and it's _yes!"_

Before anyone could move, the Lombax grabbed Patrick and walked to the open car door with the starfish held over his head. Patrick was screaming like he was on a roller coaster.

"Whoopee!! Hahahahahaha!"

"Ratchet, don't!" Spike cried. He and Jimmy grabbed Ratchet and pulled him back into the car. Patrick went flying and landed right on Clank.

"I know Patrick annoys you," he continued, "but that doesn't mean you can throw him off a moving train!"

Pat sat up and began bouncing up and down, crushing poor Clank as he did so. "Do it again! Do it again!" he begged, clapping his hands.

"Ratchet, I am in need of assistance," Clank said weakly.

His friend glared and moved toward the starfish, armed with his trusty wrench. "Get off Clank, Peanut Brain."

But Pat just kept bouncing. "What's a peanut? What's a brain? What's a—"

_Whack!_

Ratchet sent the starfish flying into a wall. Patrick blacked out, and there was silence for a while, much to everyone else's relief (especially Ratchet's). Then, as they were gazing at the starry sky, Tails broke the silence with his main thought.

"I hope Sonic's okay."

"He's fine," Spike told him. But then he turned away from the others and muttered to himself, "…I hope."

Suddenly Jimmy remembered something and turned to the fox. "Hey, Tails, when you were talking to Redd, did you say your name is Miles Prower?"

Tails shrugged. "Miles Prower is my real name. But I like my nickname better." But then his ears perked up, and he said, "Hey, is the train slowing down?"

He was proved correct when they heard the screeching of the brakes. Moments later, they were at a dead stop.

Copper and Tom Nook were the first to climb out of the car. (A/N: Tortimer had stayed behind, saying that he was too old to take part in the raid.)

"This is as close as we can get without being detected," said the dog. "We're gonna hafta walk on foot from here."

At that moment, Patrick woke up. As he was yawning, he asked once more, "Are we there yet?"

Ratchet glared at him. "Not quite." He held up his wrench. "Say it again, and you're dead."

SpongeBob then told his buddy, "Patrick, we've gotta walk to the beach."

He folded his arms and pouted. "I don't wanna go for a walk!"

"Pat, please! It's not very far!"

"No walk! I want train!" Suddenly he cracked his goofy grin and turned to Ratchet. "Are we there yet?"

The Lombax exploded. "That _does_ it!" He brought out his wrench again and towered over the starfish.

Pat's eyes grew huge; he seemed to finally realize how much trouble he was in. "Cheesecake?" Ratchet lunged for him, but he somehow dodged and leaped out of the train car. He raced for the forest, screaming the whole way.

Ratchet took off after Patrick, SpongeBob ran to help Patrick, and Tails, Spike, and Jimmy went after Ratchet to stop him (Clank was on his back). Copper and Nook followed.

The police dog shook his head, grinned, and remarked, "Way to motivate 'em."

They ran through the forest for several minutes before they came to the sandy shoreline. They then turned their course west and marched in one single file (with Ratchet and Patrick separated, of course!). There was hardly any talk, as stealth would soon be needed. After about fifteen minutes of walking, they came upon a bone-chilling sight.

The forest to their left ended at a sharp cliff, and on top of that cliff was a dark, foreboding castle. Barbed-wire fencing surrounded the castle, making the fortress unreachable unless you entered a gate somewhere else near the stone building. An atmosphere of terror and evil hung in the air around it.

The gang shivered and halted, afraid to go on. Tails was the first to move forward, with the thought of Sonic being held somewhere in that dark place on his mind. Not wanting to look like scaredy-cats, Ratchet and Spike also continued onward. The others followed behind.

It was Jimmy who spotted the hidden cave in the cliff first. He pointed it out, and they went inside. At the back of the cavern they found a deep pool of water and a control panel with a thumbprint scanner. Clank took out the glove with Crazy Redd's thumbprint and placed the thumb on the scanner. The screen turned green, and somewhere a mechanism was activated. A hole in the bottom of the pool opened, draining the water. They saw a set of stone steps leading into the pool, and at the other side was a door, which also opened. With Ratchet in the lead holding his N90 Hurricane, they walked into it.

The secret passage was pitch black, and Copper handed Ratchet a flashlight. The light revealed a narrow tunnel leading into the cliff. They followed it onward and reached a spiraling staircase. As quietly as they could manage (even Patrick, who sensed the need for stealth, was silent), they crept up the stairwell and found a door at the top. On the other side of the door was a dimly lit stone hallway; they had entered Big Boss's fortress.

But then a complication popped up: they had no idea where the control room was. They argued about which way to go until they heard the sound of robotic footsteps. They crept a little back down the staircase and closed the door, leaving it open just a crack. Clank stayed by the door. They waited for several minutes, and then the footfalls faded away. The little robot returned to them, and Nook asked, "What did you see?"

"I saw robots escorting prisoners," Clank replied. "They were most likely headed for the lower dungeons." He saw Tails watching him, and added, "Sonic was not among them." The fox deflated slightly.

"Shouldn't we follow them?" Jimmy suggested. Ratchet nodded and took the lead again.

They emerged from the passage and went the way the robots had gone, according to Clank. They eventually caught up with the escort and had to slow their pace. The troopers marched on to the lower dungeons, which was on the same level as the secret passage. They shoved their animal prisoners into their cells and departed to do their other duties. The gang made sure everything was clear before entering.

Spike whispered, "Now what? I thought we were supposed to be going for the control room."

"We're just taking a little detour," Ratchet answered. "We should free all the other animals here too. Maybe some of them know where they've put Sonic. After all, we can't trust Lyle completely."

Tails found the keys for the jail cells hanging on a nail, and they began unlocking the cells. Animals of all kinds streamed out, praising the gang for their work and wondering how they were going to escape. The heroes recognized two in particular.

"Boys!" Tom Nook cried, and he ran into the cell where Timmy and Tommy were huddled in one corner. They hugged him tightly, and he did the same. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, thanks to Sonic," Tommy said, smiling. "He kept the robots away from us."

"Do you guys know where he is?" asked Tails, biting his lip. He had not seen his best friend among the animals in that dungeon.

The Nooklings' smiles disappeared, and they gave him apologetic faces. "Sorry, but we don't know," replied Tommy with a shrug.

His brother added with a shiver, "That Chief guy came and took him away. He's mean."

Copped sighed. "We'll have to check the guard towers, then. But first, let's get you guys out of here."

The rescue party led the prisoners out of the dungeons to the secret staircase. Nook decided to lead them to their train, and he departed, taking his boys with him. The heroes and Copper then began exploring their level of the fortress. They found a computer for Clank to hack into, and he downloaded a map of the entire castle. He didn't find a list of prisoners and where they were kept, but he found something else of interest.

"There is a garage on the castle's ground level," he told the others. "Data logs show that a fleet of vehicles have been stationed there until called for."

Ratchet frowned. "If Big Boss finds out that his jail's empty, he'll send robots after them in those. We should sabotage them; it'll give Nook time!"

The group agreed, and, with Ratchet leading and Clank giving directions, they ran up one level to the garage, which was filled with cars, trucks, trains, and planes of all shapes, sizes, and models. Ratchet handed out his weapons and instructed everyone on how to use them. Within five minutes, the entire vehicle arsenal was blown to smithereens. That is, except for one.

Tails was in charge of destroying the last vehicle, which was a plane covered by a canvas tarp, and had his finger on the trigger of his weapon. But suddenly he caught a glimpse of blue under it. Curious, he ran forward and lifted up the tarp. His blue eyes grew wide, and he let out a surprised, triumphant cry of joy.

"The _Tornado_! I found it!"

The others ran over to see it, and the fox handed off his weapon so he could check his beloved plane. It took a few minutes, but when he was finished, he concluded with a smile that the _Tornado_ was unharmed and in tip-top shape.

Ratchet nodded. "We'll come back for it when we're finished. Now let's go!"

They all turned and ran for the door that went back into the base. Suddenly it opened, and the Lombax screeched to a stop. Spike slammed into his back, and the others did the same to each other. (They had been running in a single file.)

"Ow! Ratchet, what did ya do that for?!" the spiky-haired teen asked, rubbing his nose. But then he looked over Ratchet's shoulder, and his eyes widened.

He didn't need an answer anymore. He (and the others, who also looked over each other's shoulders) saw what the commando had seen.

_A familiar cloaked figure stood in their way…_


	25. Chapter 24: Rescuing Sonic

Chapter #24: Rescuing Sonic

The gang of heroes recognized the cloaked figure immediately, and they all had different reactions. SpongeBob and Patrick were terrified…well, SpongeBob was anyway.

"It's _The Chief!"_ the sponge exclaimed, backing up in fear.

Patrick put on his goofy face, held out his hands, and said, "Arrest me!"

Ratchet, Copper, and Tails went into commando mode in seconds, with the dog's pistols, the fox's N90 Hurricane (borrowed from Ratchet), and the Lombax's Dual Vipers ready to fire at the first sign of hostility.

"Freeze!" the police dog ordered, his teeth bared in a snarl.

"This thing's loaded!" Ratchet said with a wild grin. Part of him hoped the Police Chief would attack, that way he could rid the world of one wicked villain.

Tails also gave a warning. "Don't come any closer or we'll shoot!" He wanted to demand to know where Sonic was, but he bit his tongue and waited.

Suddenly Patrick bolted towards the Chief with his hands still stretched out and said, "Pickled sardines!"

The last three people mentioned had to lower their guns to grab Patrick and hold him back. Spike and Jimmy jumped forward with Stun Clubs in hand to keep up the defense. The cloaked figure seemed to stiffen when they did.

"What do you want from us?" Copper snapped.

Even though his eyes were covered, everyone felt the Chief's cold, scorning glare. He grunted, and then answered.

"My business is not with you or the hedgehog's buddies. It's with you two." A hand came up out of the cloak and pointed at Spike and Jimmy, who had also gone stiff upon hearing his voice.

"What would an evil police chief want with two kids?" Ratchet asked with a cocked eyebrow.

The Chief laughed, which sent shivers down everyone's spines. Spike and Jimmy tensed, hoping their suspicions about him were wrong…

But his next words proved them right.

"Spike, Jimmy, don't you recognize me?"

The Chief removed his hood, and what a shock everyone got!

The Secret Police Chief was a white monkey with deep crimson eyes. He wore a helmet on top of his head, but this one was unique; parts on the top of it were open, allowing his hair to flare out in spikes. He wore a set of red pants, as well as the cloak.

The gang stepped back in surprise; no one had expected the Chief to be a monkey. But the most surprised of all were Spike and Jimmy. They both gaped at him, their eyes as wide as saucers. But then the older one got into an attack pose and snapped, _"Specter!?_ What in the world are you doing here?!"

The monkey gave a wicked laugh. "Isn't it obvious? I'm trying to rule Animal Crossing."

Copper scratched his head in confusion. "I thought Big Boss was doing that."

Specter cracked a secretive smile. "His plans are on a larger scale, if you know what I mean. If I help him, this land will be mine, and monkeys shall rule."

"Over our dead bodies!" Jimmy retorted angrily.

The Chief chuckled, his malicious grin growing wider. "Very well. That can be arranged."

Suddenly he pulled the hilt of a Stun Club out of his belt. He activated it, and it lengthened out into a red, double-bladed Stun Club. The boys took out their weapons again and prepared for battle.

"Spike, what in the name of Bogon is goin' on here?!" Ratchet yelled.

"Specter is our archenemy!" the teen replied. "And we're gonna take him down! You guys get outta here and find Sonic!"

With loud battle-cries, Spike and Jimmy ran forward. Specter waited for them to come with his own sword, and the three clashed together, beginning an amazing duel.

The rest of the gang raced past the trio on their original mission. They ran through many hallways and down corridors until they finally reached the nearest guard tower. But Specter had alerted the entire base about the heroes' presence, and they were greeted by hordes of robot soldiers. Ratchet had to give Tails his Hurricane again, and the group blew a path through the enemy to the entrance. They shut the steel door, and Clank tried to give them a break by locking the door with a new encrypted password. They took a quick break to get their second wind, and then they raced up a stone staircase winding up the tower. At the top floor, they found a set of jail cells and the guard's quarters. All of them were empty, but there was a steel door at the end of the jail, and two robots were guarding it. Without even a sound Ratchet knocked them out with his wrench. He leaned against the door to listen in on what was happening on the other side.

"Can you hear anything?" Copper asked.

The commando held a finger to his lips and nodded. "There's another robot in there, maybe two. Listen."

The conversation inside the cell grew to shouting, and everyone could hear it well. One robotic voice sounded evil and furious, and the other quite bored.

"I'm afraid he won't answer you, sir."

"Oh yes he will! Get up, you!"

There was a thud, and a groan in response; the gang guessed that the robot had kicked the person he was talking to.

"My patience has reached its end, you pathetic little rat! Tell me the names of all your friends and where they are!"

A recognizable voice answered.

"Make me."

Tails made a move forward, but Copper held him back. Everyone exchanged serious looks. They had found Sonic.

For a while all they heard were more punching noises, and a few grunts of pain from Sonic as he took the blows. Finally they ceased, and the evil robot said, "This isn't working. You're too stubborn for your own good, rodent."

"Technically I'm not a rodent; I'm an insectivore," Sonic shot back. Tails grinned; he could imagine the smirk on his face as he said that.

"Can it, smart-mouth! I don't see a difference! I _hate_ biology anyway!"

Copper cocked his head. "Since when did Big Boss's robots start doing biology?" Clank rubbed his chin thoughtfully, but didn't say anything.

Sonic also took interest in this fact. They heard him say, "What, did ya fail in it?"

"I told you to _shut up!"_ the interrogator barked. "Now you've forced me to use nastier interrogation methods! In fact, I know how to squeeze the information out of a hero like you. Bring me those two animal prisoners The Boss has up here!"

This last bit was an order to the other robot, who replied, "Right away, sir."

The hero gang looked at one another in surprise. There were other animals being kept in the tower? Tails bit his lip; Sonic would probably do anything to make sure the innocent people weren't hurt, even if it meant talking. But the sound of a door being unlocked reminded them of the other robot, and they scrambled for hiding places. Some hid under the cots/bunks inside the jail cells, and others ducked under desks and tables in the jailer's room. They heard the door creak open and someone coming out.

"Must these jail doors squeak?" the robot said. "I will have to oil them during my free time."

The footsteps faded away down the staircase, and the group emerged from their hiding spots. Copper scratched his head and said, "Never heard of a picky well-to-do robot before." Clank hummed thoughtfully once more, but still didn't comment.

Ratchet shrugged. "Never mind that. Let's just bust the door down." He took his N90 Hurricane from Tails, charged to the door, and kicked it open. The others quickly rushed in after him.

The room was bigger than the prison cells, and was used for interrogation. Most of the lights were off, and cold, sharp shapes of sinister contraptions could be seen in the shadows. But there were a few lights on at the other end of the room, illuminating a steel table similar to ones seen in the Dark Ages; it was set up in a slanted angle. (A/N: Like this slash mark /.) Sonic was lying on the table, strapped to it by metal cuffs on his wrists and ankles. Next to him was his interrogator.

He was no robot Copper or any Animal Crossing citizen had ever seen before. He was taller than the normal robotic soldier, and he was blue. The top half of his skull was light green glass, so you could see the mechanisms working inside. He had glowing red eyes that were filled with hatred and evil, and his hands had sharp claws.

The minute he saw the commando barge in, Sonic perked up and exclaimed, "Ratchet!"

The blue robot whirled around to face the intruders, and he stared at the Lombax leading them. Ratchet stared back, his mouth open in shock. The two pointed at each other and shouted, _"You!" _at the same time. Sensing hostility, Copper and Tails rushed forward to fight. But the robot didn't retaliate; instead he dodged them, shoved his way past SpongeBob and Patrick, and ran out of the room. Ratchet tensed, ready to give chase, but Clank stopped him.

"Now is not the time, Ratchet," he said. "He can wait. Sonic appears to be in bad physical condition."

They turned and saw Tails and Copper wrestling with the cuffs holding the blue hedgehog on the table. They first freed his legs, and then his hands. Much to their surprise, Sonic only slid off and collapsed at the foot of the table in a heap. The fox and police dog were at his side in an instant, and helped him to his feet.

"Sonic, are you okay?" Tails asked with a great amount of worry.

At first he answered, "I'm fine." But when he took a step forward, he stumbled, and the two helped him again.

"Liar," Ratchet said. "Looks like you got a good beating."

Indeed, the hedgehog had many bruises and cuts on his face and torso. His lower lip was bleeding, and his left eye was black and blue. Sonic glared at the Lombax, but then winced and touched the hurt eye.

"Okay, so they roughed me up," he admitted. "I'll live. Where are Spike and Jimmy?"

"They are locked in combat with The Secret Police Chief. He is actually their archenemy, a monkey called Specter," Clank replied.

He whistled. "Whoa. Speakin' of enemies, was that robot an enemy of yours, Ratchet?"

The robot nodded. "Indeed he is."

Ratchet clenched his hands into fists. "Back home in the Solana Galaxy, that guy is a mechanical quack called _Dr. Nefarious._"

Patrick, who had been good up until now, grinned and asked, "Is he a duck?"

The commando made a point of ignoring him. "He wants to turn all organic life into robots, but we've stopped him. I didn't know he came to the Milky Way."

"Milky Way?! I want some milk!"

He glared at Patrick and snapped, "Patrick, shut your trap." He socked him in the jaw, and the starfish fell to the ground, now quiet.

Clank sighed at their exchange, and then continued for his friend. "The other robot that was with Dr. Nefarious was Lawrence, his butler."

"Wasn't he supposed to bring some prisoners?" Tails said, recalling Nefarious's order. "We'd better check on him!"

They ran out of the top floor onto the staircase. They heard screaming and Dr. Nefarious shouting, "Leave them, Lawrence! Ratchet and Clank are here! Let's get out of here and reassemble with the team!" Nefarious and a robot designed to look like a butler came running out of a floor below them and raced down the stairwell. Ratchet fired a few parting shots from the Hurricane, but the shots missed, and the robots went out of their sight.

"They'll let in the robots to get us!" SpongeBob cried.

Sonic immediately took charge. "Tails and I'll deal with 'em! You guys go find those two prisoners they were picking on."

His sidekick frowned. "You sure, Sonic? You don't look strong enough."

He cracked his confident smirk. "I've faced worse things than that beating Nefarious gave me, buddy. C'mon!"

Before anyone could stop him, he raced down the stairs to meet the robots. With a sigh, Tails followed behind. The others went to the floor directly below the top one, which was one big cell. As soon as Ratchet opened the door, he was pulled into the room by a fist. He fought for his life and swung at his unknown assailant.

"Hold it! I'm Ratchet! I'm that robot's enemy! I'm your friend! _Guys! Help me!"_

Copper and Clank leaped into the fight, but SpongeBob and Patrick panicked and raced outside. "Sonic! Tails! Somebody's beating up Ratchet!" the sponge shouted.

In response, a blue blur rocketed past them and into the cell. Copper and Clank got out of the way, and Sonic knocked over Ratchet's attacker. He and the stranger wrestled on the ground while the Lombax got to his feet. But then something hard hit the back of Ratchet's head, and he fell to the ground, stunned. Copper went to fight with the new person, and Clank tried to wake up his partner. When he succeeded, Ratchet helped the police dog wrestle the second attacker to the ground. At about the same time, Sonic managed to pin down the first assailant.

"Is everybody all right?" Copper called to everyone in the darkness.

"I'm fine; nuthin' seriously hurt," Ratchet replied next to him.

"I am well," responded Clank.

SpongeBob said, "Not a scratch on me!"

Ratchet glared in the sea creatures' direction. "You didn't even join the fight!"

Patrick simply retorted with, "Pickled cheesecake!"

Suddenly a familiar voice broke in, "What's going on in here?!" The group turned and saw the silhouettes of two humans and a fox standing in the doorway.

"Spike, Jimmy, Tails!" Ratchet said. "You three are sights for sore eyes! Switch on the lights, would ya?"

The fox moved toward a light switch close by the doorway. At the same time, two new voices exclaimed, "Tails?!" The lights came on, and everyone got a shock.

The two attackers were familiar faces for Sonic and Tails. The hedgehog leaped off of the one he had been wrestling with, a wide grin on his face. "Knuckles!" he said.

The red echidna blinked his purple eyes at the sight of him. He was just as surprised to see him as vice versa. "Sonic?"

On the other side of the room, Copper and Ratchet discovered that the person they had pinned to the ground was a pink hedgehog wearing a red dress. Embarrassed, they released her, and she stood up, glaring at them as she wiped the dirt off her clothes. But the minute she saw Sonic, she shrieked his name and tackled him. Sonic, on the other hand, didn't look as happy to see her.

Ratchet grinned. "Is that girl who I think it is?"

Tails sighed. "Yep. That's Amy." The commando snickered.

"Amy, let go! You're choking me!" Sonic gasped. A little reluctantly, the girl hedgehog obeyed, and he caught his breath. Then he looked at both of his two friends and folded his arms. "Now, what are you guys doing here?"

"I wanted to come with you and Tails, Sonic!" Amy said. She folded her arms and pouted. "Why didn't you ask me to come?"

Sonic and Tails looked at each other nervously. In their preparing to travel to Animal Crossing, they hadn't bothered to ask any of their friends if they had wanted to come with them. Usually it was because Knuckles didn't like to travel much, and Amy got on Sonic's nerves.

Tails shrugged and said to Amy, "We're sorry we didn't ask you, Amy."

She acknowledged his answer and continued, "Anyway, I followed you guys here. But I got caught by some robots."

Sonic turned to Knuckles. "What about you, Knux?"

The echidna sighed. "I heard this place had some kinda dictator ruling it, and I thought I'd spare you guys the trouble of rescuing Amy and catch her before she got caught."

"And instead both of you got caught," Sonic finished, smirking.

He glared at him. "I'm not talking about it."

Suddenly they heard loud banging and blaster fire coming from the bottom floor. Ratchet cocked his N90 and ran downstairs. Spike and Jimmy drew out their Stun Clubs, but Copper stopped them by asking, "What happened with your duel, boys?"

"Specter just ran away from us," Jimmy answered. "He said something about 'regrouping with the team'."

Clank perked up. "Dr. Nefarious said something similar."

The boy cocked an eyebrow. "Dr. Who?"

"He is our enemy."

"Oh."

"Do you have any clues as to where they are regrouping?"

Spike nodded. "Specter mentioned 'the auditorium'."

The robot's eyes darkened as he viewed the map he had downloaded from the main computer, and then they returned to normal. "I know the way. Let me get Ratchet."

The boys, Copper, and Clank raced out of the room. Sonic turned to follow, but Amy grabbed his arm.

"Sonic, who are these people?" she asked.

"They're friends, Amy," Tails assured her. "We're helping them fight the robots."

Knuckles clenched his fists. "In that case, let's go."

They rejoined the group at the bottom, where Ratchet was finishing off the last of the wave of robots. He took point again, and they stepped over the metal carcasses of the robots down another hallway. Clank checked the map at every junction and gave them directions. After five minutes of constant running, they came to a set of double doors. They shoved them open and walked inside.

The auditorium was a large, open room with a raised platform at one end. The wall above the platform had a wide TV screen. There was a balcony above, as well. The entire room was silent, except for the echoes of the heroes' footsteps; it was also empty. The minute he saw this, Ratchet stopped in his tracks and held up a hand to halt the others.

"It's quiet…too quiet…" he muttered.

Knuckles rolled his eyes at the cliché statement. "So they haven't made it here yet. Big deal."

Sonic shot his buddy an irritated look. "Ratchet's right, Knux; this could be a trap."

Suddenly the doors swung shut behind them with a loud clang. A few of them jumped at the sound, and Copper, Spike, Jimmy tried to open them, but failed.

"Scratch that; it _is_ a trap," the dog growled. "And we were stupid enough to fall for it."

* * *

_A Quick Author's Note:_ I want to make a quick reply to a review I got from **Shelby the Hedgehog** a couple chapters back. She mentioned Emperor Tachyon, who is the newest Ratchet & Clank villain. Well, back when I wrote this story, Dr. Nefarious was the most current villain, so I had him here. It didn't occur to me to change it after the game came out...oops. But if you don't really like Tachyon, then that's good news for you, I suppose.


	26. Chapter 25: Big Boss Revealed!

Chapter #25: Big Boss Revealed!

"No! I'm _not_ gettin' stuck in another stupid trap!" Knuckles yelled, and he rushed towards the barricaded doors and began pounding on them with his fists. He did make some dents, but didn't do any real damage that would break them open.

Suddenly maniacal laughter split the air, and everyone froze.

"Wha…_Plankton?!"_ SpongeBob yelped. He knew that laugh better than anyone else, even Patrick.

"But Copper threw him in jail at Boston!" Jimmy said. Copper nodded his head to confirm this.

Plankton's voice came through the intercom system in the auditorium. "Ha ha! You fools! The Boss sent robots to break me out while you were busy storming the fortress!"

But then a certain robotic voice cut in, "Look who's calling whom a fool, microscopic organism! You gave away our location to the enemy!"

Ratchet glared at the balcony and cocked his N90. "Nefarious."

"Well, _you_ turned the intercom on, so it's not _my_ fault!" Plankton retorted.

A third voice broke in, "Shut up, both of you! Goof up any more, and The Boss will have our heads!"

Spike frowned. "That's Specter."

"It appears that they are all using the intercom," stated Clank.

"Where is he anyway?" Plankton complained. "He's supposed to come down and help us capture these troublemakers!"

Nefarious shouted, "There you go again! _Turn off that stupid intercom!"_ There was some static, and then silence.

Copper blinked in surprise. "Big Boss himself is coming to deal with us?"

Sonic smirked and folded his arms. "I guess we made an impression."

Jimmy took out his Stun Club. "We're not afraid of Big Boss!" he declared. But then he looked at his cousin with uncertainty. "…Are we?"

The red-haired teen slapped his forehead and muttered, "I can't see how we're related."

Knuckles snorted. "I'm not afraid of anything."

Sonic rolled his eyes. "Yeah right, and I'm Patrick."

Said starfish cut in, "No, _I'm _Patrick!"

The hedgehog glanced at him. "I was being sarcastic, Patrick."

"Who's Patrick?"

Knuckles stared at the pink starfish for a moment, and then whispered to Tails, "Is he always that stupid?"

The fox shook his head and replied, "If only you knew…"

Suddenly a pair of doors on the other side of the room opened, and about a dozen robots marched inside. But these were not the same models as what the heroes had been fighting since they had arrived. These were an older version…and a design that Tails recognized. His blue eyes widened, and he let out a yelp of shock. He backed up a step, but slipped and fell on his rear.

"Tails, what is wrong?" Clank asked.

But the fox didn't answer him. Instead he pointed and said, "S-sonic! Th-those are Egg Pawns!"

Sonic, Knuckles, and Amy gave a violent start and stared at the approaching robots. The hedgehog exclaimed, "Holy chilidogs! They are!"

"But what are they doing here?!" the red echidna said.

Suddenly Sonic stiffened. His green eyes widened for a moment, and then narrowed. "There's only one reason…" he growled.

A new voice finished for him.

"They're following their creator, of course!"

Out of the shadows of the other doors came a walker mech. Mounted on two sturdy legs was a cockpit shaped like an egg, with the top half open for the pilot. Said pilot was a human in a red suit; he had a large, bushy mustache, big nose, blue glasses, bald head, and goggles on his forehead.

At the sight of him, all but the four who knew him backed away, their faces showing revulsion. Tails and Knuckles gaped in shock, but Sonic tensed even more, with a look of hatred on his face. Amy gasped, and shrieked, _"__Dr. Eggman!"_ Then she hid behind the fox and echidna.

Spike blinked. "Dr. 'Eggman'?"

"Oh brother," Jimmy said, slapping his forehead.

SpongeBob thought it funny and did his laugh. But Patrick made a confused face and said, "Eggs can't be bad! They always taste good!" Ratchet clunked him on the head with his Omniwrench to shut him up.

"I'm gonna make a guess," the Lombax said while stepping forward and twirling his primary weapon. "You're Sonic's archenemy."

Dr. Eggman let out a laugh. "Ho ho! How right you are! You're intelligent for a furry alien!" The Lombax growled at this.

Jimmy asked, "Are you working for Big Boss too?"

"No, Jimmy," Sonic replied through gritted teeth. "Egghead doesn't work for anybody but himself. He _is_ Big Boss."

The evil genius laughed again. "Right again, Sonic! For months I've been invading this primitive land and ruling it. I will admit, I would have lost if not for three fellow villains. I believe you've met them already."

Right on cue, Dr. Nefarious, Specter, and Plankton (who was piloting a mech much skinnier than Eggman's but as tall as Nefarious) entered the auditorium, wearing wicked grins. The rest of the group tensed.

Eggman gestured to them and said, "Together the four of us will conquer the world, and then the entire universe! We are _The Evil Alliance!" _

Copper curled his lip and gave a canine growl; the name was a mock-up of the Animal Alliance if ever he had heard one.

Dr. Nefarious stepped forward and pointed a cold claw at them. "When we are through with the pitiful resistance, you foolish squishies will kneel before our unstoppable alliance!"

Jimmy scrunched up his face in confusion. "'Squishies'?"

Clank frowned and explained, "It is an insulting name for organic life forms."

To confirm this, Ratchet, trembling in rage, pulled out his assault rifle and snarled, "Nobody calls _me_ a squishie and lives to tell about it!" He moved forward, but the others stopped him. It took Knuckles, Spike, and Copper to hold him back. Nefarious just laughed at Ratchet's anger.

But then Eggman glared at them and snapped, "Enough talk!" He turned to his Egg Pawns and commanded, _"Seize them!"_

The robots charged forward to obey, and the heroes were faced with a split-second decision: fight or run. Knuckles and Ratchet made theirs very quickly; they ran towards their enemies to attack. Sonic, Spike, and Copper soon followed. Tails, Amy, and Jimmy were hesitant to join the fight, while SpongeBob and Patrick were just plain scared. After a while they opted to run for the opposite side of the auditorium, where the doors the villains had come through were still open.

But the villains weren't going to simply sit by and let Eggman's robots do the job. Specter drew out his double-bladed, red Stun Club and charged to meet Spike. Plankton fired weapons from the sidelines, and a few managed to stun the fighting heroes. Eggman pressed a few buttons to bring a giant claw with a thick extension cable out of his mech, and he tried to grab anyone who got too close to him.

Dr. Nefarious, however, wasn't focused on the fighters; he spotted the heroes running for the open doors and acted quickly. He brought out a remote control and pressed a button; a three-dimensional, holographic image of his butler appeared on it. "Lawrence!" he shouted. "Bring reinforcements and stop those squishies!"

Lawrence sighed. "Right away, sir."

The next thing Tails, Amy, Jimmy, and the sea creatures knew, more robots were pouring into the auditorium through the doors, blocking their escape. SpongeBob and Patrick immediately turned tail and ran a different direction, but Jimmy and Tails attempted to make a stand. Amy hesitated, and it was her ruin.

While the two boys were desperately fighting the robots surrounding them on all sides, the pink hedgehog backed away to find SpongeBob and Patrick. But when she turned around, she came face to face with Lawrence, who was holding a strange gun with a large barrel.

"I apologize in advance, miss; I'm just doing my job," he said, though with hardly any remorse in his deadpan tone of voice. Then he fired his weapon.

A heavy net shot out of it and fell over Amy. The force of it sent her rolling a few feet, tangling her in it even more. She gasped and struggled, but was trapped. Beginning to panic, she cried to Tails for help.

Tails heard, and he and Jimmy tried to fight their way to her. But the Egg Pawns had formed a barrier they couldn't break through, and they were beginning to tire. The fatal blow came when one of the robots knocked Jimmy's Stun Club out of his hand. Now defenseless, he was soon overpowered and wrestled to the ground. Realizing that he was out of reach of help, the fox took to the air to try and get to Amy, but a robot fired its plasma cannon and injured one of his tails. With a yelp, he crashed to the ground, and soon met the same fate as Jimmy.

With Tails, Jimmy, and Amy down for the count, the Pawns could now focus on the original fighters. The reinforcements moved to the scene, but there they met a much harder challenge. Sonic and Knuckles proved to be impossible to beat, since they were experienced in fighting that model of robot. Ratchet didn't have the same experience, but he had the weapons to make him a formidable foe. Spike was the easiest prey, as he was only armed with a simple club that only glowed and was shaped like a sword. Specter had also softened him up for them, so they had him cornered very quickly. Realizing this, the human called for help, and Knuckles came to assist him. Unfortunately for them, Specter was able to make quick work of him, using his agility and skill with his Stun Club, and had him knocked to the ground, too stunned to be of any help. Spike soon joined him on the floor, relieved of his weapon and held there by Pawns.

But Ratchet, Clank, and Sonic wouldn't give up or let down their guard. They remained on the offensive, attacking Plankton, Dr. Eggman, and Specter (when he joined their fight). The hedgehog used his speed to dodge their attacks and give his own; he mainly went for his nemesis, since he knew how to combat the mech (called the Egg Walker). The commando fired at whoever came too close to him, switching weapons whenever he ran out of ammo. On his back, Clank watched in dismay as weapon after weapon was discarded, and yet the robots and villains kept coming.

Finally the fight ended in a nasty turn of fate for the heroes. Eggman played a card he had hidden up his sleeve.

The evil scientist pressed a small button on his controls, and the giant claw suddenly began to change its parts around (like a Transformer toy). It backed into the cable, and then something else came out. It was a heavy, circular plate of metal with a few mechanical attachments. He pressed yet another button, and the contraption began to hum. Grinning, he maneuvered it over the Lombax and the robot. Clank saw it, and his green eyes brightened in horror; he knew what it was.

"Ratchet! Look out!" he cried, pointing at the device. His friend did heed his warning and looked up, but it was too late.

He cried out in surprise as his Omniwrench (his only weapon, as his others had run out of ammo) was suddenly torn from his hands and pulled upward onto the device. Then he yelled as he and Clank were pulled up. He pressed a button to remove Clank from his back, but that only let him fall a few inches; parts of his suit were made out of metal, and therefore magnetic. Then he was pulled back up.

"Stupid magnet," he growled; he would have folded his arms in a pout, but they were pinned to the surface of the magnet.

Sonic saw everything, and he stopped what he was doing to glare fiercely at his archenemy. "Eggman, you dirty cheater!" he snarled. Then he curled up into a spiny ball and propelled himself toward the magnet, trying to free Ratchet and Clank.

But Eggman anticipated this move and made his own. He pressed more buttons to release the magnet device, and it fell to the ground. Luckily for Ratchet and Clank, it landed with their side facing up. Plankton moved forward and used a crane in his mech to grab the device and bring it out of the fight. Sonic dove for them…and walked right into the trap.

What the hedgehog hadn't counted on was that the cable could still be used when a device on the end was removed. Using a small joystick covered in buttons, Eggman controlled the cable and moved it in front of Sonic, bringing it up to his chest. He rammed right into it, and began to fall on his back, but Eggman moved faster. In seconds the blue hedgehog found himself wrapped tightly in the cable, with his arms pinned to his sides. The cable was also around his legs, rendering them useless. He struggled, but his nemesis only applied more pressure. It was like being in the crushing coils of a python.

Sonic's face showed anger, but inside he was beginning to panic. He had been robbed of his speed and his arms, and was now at Eggman's mercy. He was in a bad jam, and he knew it. He squirmed harder and shouted, "Let _go_ of me, you _jerk!"_

"Jerk? You've made better insults than that," the evil genius sneered with a gloating grin. "What's the matter, Sonic? Getting scared now that you're helpless?"

By now the other heroes had been gathered together in a bunch, and watched Sonic and Eggman with horror, especially Tails. It was rare to see Sonic a prisoner, and he usually kept his composure when it happened. Even when the Secret Police had caught him, he had been defiant and strong-willed. But now he was on the verge of panicking; it was hard to see for those who didn't know him enough, since he could hide his feelings well. But Tails could see it plain as day, and it terrified him.

"You won't take me alive, Eggman!" Sonic yelled, his voice taking on a desperate, high pitch.

The doctor's grin got even nastier. "How about if I take you barely alive?" He pressed one more button on his joystick.

Suddenly the cable came alive with electricity, and it gave its captive an intense shock. He screamed in pain, causing most of his friends to cringe and look away from the horrible display. Ratchet continued to watch, his eyes burning with hatred at the cruelty of it. Tails let out his own scream of _"Nooooooo!!"_

After about six seconds of electrocution, Dr. Eggman released the button to deactivate it. Sonic went limp like a rag doll, and his nemesis released him. He dropped like a stone, hit the ground, and lay there, unmoving.

"_Sonic!!"_ Tails screamed again. He broke free from the Egg Pawns and rushed to his best friend's side. He turned him over, gripped his shoulders, and vigorously shook him. "Sonic, wake up! Say something! Sonic!" But there was no response, and he burst into tears and buried his face in the hedgehog's chest.

Ratchet, who had had enough, kicked his captor, Specter, in the stomach. The white monkey reeled from the blow, releasing him. The Lombax ran over to Tails and began searching Sonic for life signs. He felt one wrist, and then looked up at the sobbing fox. "Tails, he's got a pulse." Tails looked up at him, his blue eyes full of hope.

Eggman snorted. "Of course he's not dead; I said I would take him _barely_ alive, didn't I?"

The alien commando whirled and gave him the fiercest glare he could muster. "You are the most evil, most heartless scumbag in the universe!" he snarled.

The evil genius returned the look, insulted. In retaliation, Specter knocked Ratchet down and whaled on him with his feet and double-bladed Stun Club.

"Enough of this!" Dr. Nefarious cut in. "Now that we have cowed the squishies, Boss, might I suggest a more permanent punishment for their meddling?"

Specter turned to the blue robot with a grin. "You mean to take them to the lab, don't you?" When Nefarious nodded, he chuckled wickedly and said to Eggman, "I think he has a good idea, Boss. Let's decide there what we should do with our enemies."

A similar grin spread across Dr. Eggman's face. "Very well. Cuff them."

The Egg Pawns forced each of the heroes, at gunpoint, to lean against the wall to be cuffed. Then they were cuffed together in a line by a chain. The only exception was Sonic, who was still unconscious. The robots gave him the cuffs, and also put a pair on his ankles; then they lifted him and carried him behind the end of the line. Once they were ready, the four villains led their prisoners out of the auditorium.

But, if they had done a head count, they would have realized that two people were missing. SpongeBob and Patrick had hidden behind some crates close to the platform during the fight, and had watched their comrades get captured one by one. The sponge gasped at the sight of his defeated friends, and wanted to help, but only when they were out of earshot did he get up from his hiding place.

"Our friends are in trouble, Pat. We've gotta help them!"

Of course, all Patrick said was, "Pancakes."


	27. Chapter 26: SpongeBob to the Rescue!

Chapter #26: SpongeBob to the Rescue!

After much pushing and shoving, the prisoners were led into a gigantic lab with all sorts of scientific equipment and locked in a large cage. Plankton, Specter, Dr. Nefarious, and Dr. Eggman gathered into one corner of the room and began bickering about what kind of punishment they would give to their long-time enemies. Some of the heroes listened in, but Tails, Amy, Ratchet, and Clank were more concerned about Sonic; he was beginning to wake up, but his anguished moans showed how much pain he was in. When he finally opened his eyes, he focused on his sidekick and tried to speak. At first, it came out garbled, but then he regained control of his tongue.

"Urgh…T-tails? Wh-where are we?"

"In their lab, Sonic," the fox replied. "They're talking about what they're going to do to us."

"In that case, help me up. I'm not gonna go down without a fight."

Ratchet and Tails got him up on his feet, and supported him with their arms behind his back. Several times he began to wobble; his body was still slightly paralyzed from his electrocution. It took several minutes, but they helped him to the edge of the cage, and they listened to the four villains argue.

"What should their punishment be, Doctor?" Specter asked.

Nefarious began, "I say we…"

But the white monkey interrupted, "I was talking to The Boss, bolt brain!"

"_Bolt brain?! _Why I ought to…"

"Cut the bickering!" Eggman shouted. Both of them fell silent.

Then Plankton suggested, "Why don't we take a vote on this?"

"Big Boss" was quick to reply. "Leader votes first! I say we drown them!"

Specter shook his head. "The firing squad would be better."

As they debated this, Jimmy looked at his cousin and asked, "What's a firing squad?"

Ratchet shook his head and replied, "You don't wanna know."

"Why not use the old-fashioned guillotine?" Plankton put in.

Specter cocked an eyebrow. "The device that cuts off heads?" Copper and Amy fainted, and the others gulped.

But Eggman turned a thumb down. "No, it's too bloody, not to mention quick and painless."

Then Nefarious cracked an evil grin. _"__I _have an idea." He whispered his idea to the other villains, and the group began chuckling and rubbing their hands gleefully.

Tails bit his lip. "What do you think he said?"

Sonic sighed. "Whatever it is, it can't be good."

"Or quick," Knuckles added.

"Or painless," Ratchet finished. Suddenly he felt someone tug on his pant leg, and he looked down at Clank. "What?"

"Ratchet, I just realized something," the little robot said, his metallic brow furrowed with worry. "SpongeBob and Patrick are not with us. They were not captured."

Tails perked up. "You're right! Maybe they can escape!"

"Or rescue us," Clank suggested.

But Ratchet shook his head. "Those two couldn't find their way out of a closet, much less a castle. No rescue for us."

"Guys," Spike broke in, "they're done talking."

They stopped their conversation and roused Copper and Amy. Right after they did, the Evil Alliance stepped up to their cage with secretive, sinister grins.

"So, you're finally up, Sonic," Eggman said. "How do you feel? Terrible, I hope."

The blue hedgehog gritted his teeth and flattened his ears in reply.

"But that hardly matters. I have consented to let Dr. Nefarious use you for one of his secret weapons."

Sonic's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "What kind of secret weapon?"

"Just a ray called the Biobliterator."

That one word sent intense shockwaves of horror down Ratchet's spine, and Clank's eyes brightened several watts. For a few seconds they only gaped at the villains, and then the Lombax exploded.

"_You still have that abomination of a doomsday weapon, Nefarious?! You __**fiend!"**_

Everyone else backed up a step, surprised by Ratchet's outburst. It also worried them; the Biobliterator must be a terrible machine for mention of it to cause Ratchet to lose his nerve. And they couldn't ignore the key words "abomination" and "doomsday weapon".

Suddenly Ratchet jumped between the bars of the cage and Sonic, shielding him from Nefarious's greedy red eyes. He spread his arms and legs out as a sign of resistance. "No one deserves that, Nefarious! But if you're gonna do it to anybody, do it to me!"

"Ratchet!" Clank and Sonic protested at the same time, but one glare from him shut both of them up.

"How selfless of you, Lombax," the wicked robot sneered, "but a deal is a deal. We have agreed that the blue rat is your team's source of confidence. If we destroy him, we destroy your morale. So do not resist, unless you wish to suffer as well."

Suddenly Specter opened the cage and charged forward into the group, swinging his double-bladed Stun Club around. One end hit Ratchet in the face, and the other impacted with Tails' stomach. Once he had everyone stunned, he grabbed Sonic and shoved him out into the clutches of the other three villains. He rushed out and shut the door, and just in time. Less than a second later, Ratchet hit the bars in an attempt to stop them.

"_Fight them, Sonic!" _he shouted, banging on the bars and trying to force them apart. _"Fight them for your life! Don't let them do it! Fight them!__** Fight!"**_

His comrade's wild antics spurred the blue hedgehog into struggling and digging in his heels. But Specter only beat him with his Stun Club until he was too weak to resist. Then Nefarious dragged him to a thick metal pole connected to the ceiling and floor of the lab. It was there that they handcuffed him, and the robot brought his remote out once more.

"Lawrence, is the Biobliterator warmed up?"

"Almost, sir. It is at 80 percent capacity," the image of the butler robot replied.

"Open the doors!"

"Right away, sir."

The wall in front of the pole where Sonic was cuffed suddenly split apart; they were really doors painted to look like the wall. In the room beyond, a gigantic ray took up most of the space. Most of it was gray, but the tip glowed red-orange, and electrical components switched from purple to green to blue. Next to it was a control panel, where Lawrence was pressing a few buttons and pulling some levers.

Jimmy gulped. "That doesn't look quick or painless."

As the ray was warming up, Ratchet was on the verge of having a nervous breakdown. He constantly yelled _"You fiends!"_ and attacked the cage bars like a crazy animal.

Tails turned to Clank, whose face was sad and defeated, and said, "Clank…"

"…Yes, Tails?"

"…What does it do?"

He turned his sad eyes to the fox. "You really wish to know?"

He thought hard on that for a moment, and then nodded.

The robot sighed and lowered his head. "…It converts organic life-forms into robots."

"It does _**what?!"**_ Jimmy cried.

Copper, Knuckles, and Spike stood very still and were quiet, too stunned to speak. Amy burst into tears, and Tails leaned against the cage bars, overwhelmed. Ratchet continued his antics, and Clank sighed again.

Dr. Nefarious grinned at the prisoners, and then turned to Sonic, whose eyes were as wide as saucer plates. "Ready to become a robot slave to our empire, rodent?"

Too scared out of his wits to say anything, the hedgehog simply began fighting with his cuffs with much more effort than before.

"The Biobliterator is ready for firing, sir," Lawrence reported.

"Very good. Begin firing protocols," said Nefarious.

As the ray hummed to life and its tip glowed brighter, Sonic turned to his comrades in their cage. But the fear in his green eyes was gone, and in its place was strength. He cleared his throat, and spoke to them as best as he could.

"This was the best adventure I've ever had. I wouldn't trade it for anything. …And you're the best team I've ever been in. …Thanks, guys."

Spike, Jimmy, Copper, Knuckles, and Clank nodded grimly without a word. Amy cried harder, and Tails began to cry. Ratchet stared back at the doomed hedgehog, with his face contorted into a furious glare.

"I'll avenge you."

But Sonic only smirked.

"Fire the ray!" Nefarious cried.

Dr. Eggman moved to press the button…

_**Crash!**_

Suddenly something burst through one wall of the lab: a yellow bulldozer.

"What the…?!" cried the villains.

The driver's door opened, but no one came out. Instead there were voices.

"Patrick, look what you did! I _told _you not to mess with the controls!"

"I wanted to turn on the stove."

"There _is _no stove in the bulldozer!"

"Oh."

"It's SpongeBob and Patrick! They're here to save us!" Jimmy whooped with joy.

Eggman turned to Plankton and bellowed, "Plankton, you idiot! I thought you said we had them all! And you said those two were too stupid to be heroes!"

The tiny green villain began to sweat. "Err, well…"

Inside the cab, SpongeBob declared, "We can beat you!"

"Cheesecake rules!" Patrick "agreed".

Dr. Nefarious folded his arms, unimpressed. "And why do you think that, squishies?"

"Because…because I'm…I'm…"

SpongeBob leaped out of the cab; he wore a disco suit and a microphone headset, and held a red rock guitar in his hands.

"_I'm a Goofy Goober!! __**Rock!!"**_ he sang at the top of his lungs.

Plankton moaned and held his head in his hands. "Oh no, not again.."

"What do you mean, 'not again'?!" Nefarious demanded. Plankton tried to explain, but SpongeBob continued his song, playing loudly on his "Sonic Wave Guitar".

"_You're a Goofy Goober!! __**Rock!!**__ We're all Goofy Goobers!! __**Rock!!**__ Goofy Goofy Goober Goober __**yeah!!"**_

"Never mind!" the blue robot finally shouted. "Just fire the Biobliterator!"

While playing a few chords of the song, SpongeBob looked up. "Huh?" He spotted the Biobliterator, Eggman moving to press a button, and Sonic struggling at the metal pole. He put the puzzle pieces together and jumped between the ray and the hedgehog. Then he shot a powerful energy beam from his guitar at the ray, destroying it.

"_What?!"_ Eggman cried, falling to floor to avoid the explosion. "How could this happen?!"

SpongeBob ignored him and fired another, smaller energy beam at Sonic's cuffs. They shattered, and the blue hedgehog raced out of the ray's line of fire, just in case. They both went for the cage to free the others, but then something else happened.

Patrick finally jumped out of the cab of the bulldozer…_wearing a ballerina's tutu?!_

"_Goofer Goobies! Goofer Goobies!"_ he yelled stupidly while waving his arms. He was stopped when he ran into a wall. He stayed there for a moment, and then fell to the ground, laughing.

Everyone else stared at him in silence for a moment, and then Jimmy asked, "Why is he wearing a tutu?"

Ratchet shrugged; for him, the answer was a no-brainer. "'Cause he's an idiot; why else?"

"But where did he get it?"

"Part of me doesn't want to know. Now let's get outta here."

SpongeBob used his guitar to break the lock on the cage, and the heroes ran out as quickly as they could. Luckily for them, their weapons had been brought into the lab in a crate. Spike and Jimmy recovered their Stun Clubs, and began to duel again with Specter. Ratchet got all of his weapons back, and reloaded whatever ones he had ammo for. And it was a good thing he did; Dr. Nefarious and Lawrence had called for robot reinforcements. The doors to the lab burst open, and Egg Pawns poured in. But this time, they were no match for the ten heroes, and for several reasons. The first was they were determined to win this time. The second was SpongeBob's new guitar. The third involved the bulldozer; trigger-happy Ratchet hopped into the cab and used it to mow robots down. The rest of the gang got behind it and took out any guards that made it past him.

The Evil Alliance could only stare in amazement as their arch-foes destroyed legions of their robots. Specter, however, noticed that Plankton was writing on a tiny piece of paper. "What are you doing?" he asked.

Plankton looked up from his work. "Writing my will, what else?"

Dr. Eggman made his way out of the wreckage of the Biobliterator and snapped, "Don't give up so soon! We're not finished yet, not by a long shot!" He turned to the heroes, shook his fist, and yelled, "Don't get too excited, boys! Those were the easy ones!" Then he hopped into his walker and followed the other three retreating villains.

Knuckles finished off one Egg Pawn and complained, "How many times has he said that?!" (A/N: I'm referring to Sonic Heroes.)

Sonic shrugged. "Who's counting? Let's just get outta here before more 'bots show up!" Then he grinned and waved at the bulldozer. "Bring that, would ya, Ratchet?" The Lombax saluted and drove the bulldozer after him as he and the others raced through the hole that SpongeBob and Patrick had made before.

The going was rough, and the bulldozer had a tough time of it, but the gang fought their way through the castle, destroying robots and busting through obstacles they couldn't get around. Finally they left the castle via the drawbridge, and crossed onto the front lawn. Strangely, in the middle of it, there was what appeared to be a helipad. But when they came close to it, it suddenly split apart, and a _gigantic_ mech rose out of the hole. It was a generic design, with four limbs and a torso. The arms had lasers, plasma cannons, and machine guns, and the chest panels opened up to reveal dozens upon dozens of missiles. The head of the mech was a half-sphere with clear glass. When it bent down to see the heroes, the gang realized that all four of the villains were in the head, controlling it.

"Foolish squishies!" Dr. Nefarious shouted over a microphone in the cockpit. "Now you will feel the wrath of the Evil Alliance!"

Some of the heroes gulped, but Patrick, who had changed back into his normal pants, gawked and said, "Oooh…big and shiny."

Ratchet leaned out of the bulldozer and said, "No biggie. I've fought mechs bigger than this one."

"But Ratchet," Clank interrupted, "we had turrets with enough firepower to destroy those mechs. There are none in the vicinity."

Suddenly Tails brightened. "I'll get the _Tornado_!" he exclaimed. "Maybe it'll have enough firepower to knock it down!"

"I'll go with you, Tails!" Sonic said.

"Me too!" Amy cut in.

The blue hedgehog frowned and shook his head. "No, Amy. You're staying here with Knuckles."

She quickly opened her mouth to object, but when he folded his arms, she knew he wasn't going to change his mind. She pouted, "You guys have all the fun!"

Knuckles rolled his eyes. "We'll be having fun dodging that mech." Her eyes widened, and she gulped.

"We'll stick it out here and find some other things to use!" Ratchet said. Then he tossed a walkie-talkie to Sonic (don't ask where he got it). "Take this! Let us know when you're ready!"

With nods, Sonic and Tails ran back into the castle to fetch the blue biplane. To keep the Evil Alliance from seeing, Ratchet drove his bulldozer first into the left foot of the mech. It wobbled, and that encouraged him to go for the right foot. Unfortunately, the bulldozer didn't cause much harm. The pilots just laughed their heads off at the silly attempt to destroy their machine. Nefarious, who was in control of the mech's movement (it was his robot, actually), made a motion to stomp the bulldozer and its driver into oblivion. Ratchet saw the move and jumped to safety before he was crushed.

Spike threw his hands up into the air in exasperation. _"Now_ what do we do?!"

"We're sitting ducks!" Jimmy cried. Next to him, SpongeBob whimpered and made scared quacking noises.

Then they heard the roar of a plane engine, and the _Tornado _whizzed over their heads. Ratchet's walkie-talkie crackled to life, with Tails speaking on the other end.

"Ratchet, this is the _Tornado_. We're goin' in!"

Sonic's voice shouted close by, "This'll be a piece o' cake!"

The Lombax looked up into the sky and watched as the _Tornado_ soared into battle. He replied, "Good luck, you two! We're all counting on you!"


	28. Chapter 27: The Final Battle

Chapter #27: The Final Battle

The _Tornado _soared over the castle to meet its metal foe. Tails was in the cockpit, of course, and Sonic stood behind him on the back of the plane, close by the tail. As they drew close to the mech, the fox unleashed its primary machine gun weapon. (A/N: I think I saw it in Sonic Adventure.) Bullets sliced through the air, and many found their mark. The Evil Alliance's mech turned around in surprise to meet the tiny plane, which banked away from them out of their range, preparing for another charge.

Dr. Nefarious wasn't impressed. "What a pesky little fly."

But Eggman had seen Tails and his biplane in action too many times to underestimate it. "That's no fly; that's a hornet! Shoot them out of the sky, _now!"_

As the _Tornado_ came by for another shot, Plankton activated the machine gun in the mech's right arm and sent a hail of bullets after it. Tails dodged the fire like the pro ace he was and sent his own into the chest and head—the weak spots, he hoped. But they only scarred the surface.

"Fools!" Plankton said. "We are _invincible!"_

Specter began pressing buttons on his control panel. "I'll send out the seeker missiles."

Four seeker missiles shot out from a compartment in the mech's chest. Tails had a harder time dodging them. He barrel-rolled to force two of the projectiles to collide (A/N: saw it in Star Wars Episode III; it was awesome), but the other ones were gaining.

Sonic watched the missiles as they chased the _Tornado_, and started to sweat; they were a little too close for comfort. "Got any more moves on ya, Tails?" he asked. "We need 'em bad!"

But his best friend also sweated. "Err…"

_**Bang! Kaboom!**_

The missiles had been destroyed! The pair looked down to the ground to see Ratchet with a sniper rifle, waving at them. Over the radio he called, "My Flux Rifle took care of them! Get the mech!"

Nodding, Tails turned the plane around and fired again at the Alliance. But once again, there seemed to be hardly any damage. He said into the radio, "Guys, I'm making nothing but big dents!"

Clank said, "Its armor is thicker than we first supposed. I am afraid that your machine gun will not inflict serious damage. Do you have any other weapons available?"

"I did have missiles once, but I didn't bring them here." But then he smiled and looked behind him at Sonic. "But I have one weapon that should do the trick."

The blue hedgehog caught on and grinned. "Me!"

"I beg your pardon?" Clank asked, very confused.

The fox veered off from the mech so he could explain in detail without getting shot down. "I have something called the Power Ring. If Sonic uses it, he can go super fast! And if he curls into a ball with the energy of a Power Ring, he can smash through almost anything!"

Ratchet broke in, "Let's give it a shot! How many Rings do ya have?"

"Three! So we've only got three shots at blowing the mech! But I need to know its main weakness!"

"I have done my most detailed scan of the mech," Clank said. "Its major weakness is the main generator, located in the chest. The metal covering it, however, is very thick."

Sonic jumped up onto the top set of wings of the blue biplane and thrust a fist into the air, declaring, "Bring it on!"

Tails pressed a button, and a panel on the back of the plane opened, revealing a cannon-like device. Then he steered the plane closer to the mech. Sonic shouted "Now!" and leaped off of the wings. The fox pushed another button, and the device shot out a shining, gold Power Ring. Sonic caught it in one hand, and he glowed for a few seconds as the Ring's energy was transferred to him. The next moment he was a rapidly spinning, spiky blue ball. He propelled himself forward and rammed into the mech with unbelievable strength; the villains fell out of their seats upon impact. The blue hedgehog managed to bore a hole right through the mech, but when he was finished, it was still standing.

Spike, who was standing near Ratchet, asked into the radio, "Tails, what happened?"

"I dunno," was the reply. "He must've missed the generator."

Amy grabbed the radio from Ratchet and asked, "Tails, where's Sonic? Is he all right?!"

Right on cue, said hedgehog screeched to a stop in front of them; he had gone quite a distance after breaking through the mech. "Yeah, I'm okay. Let's try it again! I saw the generator when I went through. I think I can hit it this time!"

The _Tornado_ swooped down to pick him up, and Sonic jumped back onto the wings. Tails launched another Ring, and he spun at the mech again. But this time the Evil Alliance saw it coming.

"It's that blasted Power Ring attack!" Eggman growled. "Nefarious, dodge it!"

The blue robot played with his controls, and the mech swerved to miss the deadly spinning ball. Instead of tearing through steel and robot parts, Sonic found himself ripping through a few dead trees in a small grove close by. He came back to the others covered in leaves, wood chips, and even sawdust, rubbing his head.

"I think I hit a rock," he groaned. "I've got one bad headache."

Spike inspected the area. "And a nasty bump on your head."

Copper (yes, he's still here) scratched his head. "What happened this time?"

"I believe the Evil Alliance has caught on to our plan," stated Clank.

As if to confirm this Dr. Eggman laughed into the microphone. "Hahahaa! You can't fool me anymore with that move, Sonic!"

"The mech can run even with a _hundred_ of your little holes in it!" Dr. Nefarious boasted.

"Like I said before," Plankton cut in, _"__we are __**invincible**__!"_

Specter said, "Is that the best you can do? How pathetic."

That mock was too much for Sonic. With a determined glare, he shook off the leaves, chips, and sawdust. "We're trying it again!"

"But Sonic," Jimmy protested, "Eggman said…"

"But nuthin'! We're gonna go one more time!"

He signaled Tails to fly in and pick him up. The _Tornado_ came down again, and once he was back on, it turned to face the mech a third time. The launcher fired its last Ring, and the blue hedgehog took off again. But he found the villains prepared for him; the mech reached out with its right arm, which had a large plasma cannon. He rocketed inside the hole, hoping for a faster way in, but the mech suddenly pointed its arm at the ground and fired. Sonic was shot out and blasted into the ground. Immediately the others rushed over to the impact site.

Spike got there first, and saw their friend lying face down in the crater. He leaped in and turned him over. "Sonic! Are you okay, man?! Wake up!"

Jimmy ran up beside him. "Say something! Say anything!"

Next was Amy. Already she was crying. "Don't die, Sonic!" she sobbed. "I'm too young for you to die!" Everyone else turned to her and cocked their eyebrows.

"Guys, what's going on?! Is Sonic okay?!" Tails yelled frantically over the radio.

Ratchet came over and took one of Sonic's hands, feeling along his wrist. He breathed a sigh of relief and told everyone, "He's got a pulse. He's only unconscious."

Clank said, "That Ring probably cushioned his fall. But it dissipated right before impact, so he has not come out of it without some wounds."

They all noticed how badly bruised the hedgehog was, and Knuckles winced and said, "That's gotta hurt."

Suddenly Sonic groaned and mumbled, "You're tellin' me." He cracked open his eyes and blinked at everyone surrounding him. "Would you guys stand still? You're givin' me a migraine."

"We _are_ still, Sonic," the Lombax said.

"You sure? The whole place is spinning…"

"Lie still," Clank told him. "Your vision should clear in a moment."

Sonic blinked some more, and then slowly sat up with help from Spike and Jimmy. Amy hugged him again, nearly suffocating him, and making the world spin again. Copper made her let go, and he got his bearings again.

"Note to self," the blue hedgehog said, getting back his sense of humor, "never go into the barrel of a cannon. I'll get shot back out." Some of the others chuckled. Then he asked, "Where's Tails? Is he okay?"

"He's holding off the mech for us," Copper replied. "Let's get to some cover."

The group got Sonic to his feet, and they raced for a large pile of boulders that offered some cover. Once there, Sonic said, "Could someone get Tails down here? I'm going back up."

Immediately Ratchet and Copper grabbed his arms and forced him to sit. "Oh, no you don't," the dog said. "There is no way we're letting you go back up there."

He flattened his ears and frowned. "Why not?"

"Sonic," Clank said from his position on Ratchet's back, "you have taken heavy physical damage all throughout today. You are in no condition to continue fighting."

"They'd finish you off easily," Copper added. "Up there, you have worse chances than snow coming in July."

Sonic couldn't deny these facts, and with a sigh he lowered his head and relaxed. "Fine. I'll stay." Amy sat by him and hugged him again, much to his discomfort. But he was too tired to bother with getting her off.

"Don't worry, Sonic," Jimmy said, pointing at the _Tornado_ moving through the sky, "those two will take care of the mech."

Everyone gave him a very puzzled stare.

"What?"

"You said _two_, Jimmy," his older cousin said.

The boy's eyes widened as he realized it also. "Oh gosh, yeah! There's somebody else in the plane with Tails! Look!"

They all raised their heads and watched the blue biplane. Indeed, a shadowy figure was sitting behind the Ring launcher.

"Tails," Ratchet said into the radio, "there's someone else on the plane with you!"

"_Huh?!_ Wh-what?!" sputtered the fox.

Suddenly a second, familiar voice yelled, _"__Peanut butter tacos!"_

"_**Patrick!?"**_ the heroes and Copper cried in shock.

"How in the name of Bogon did he get up there?!" Ratchet said.

"He must've followed us when we went for the _Tornado_," Sonic said. "And we never saw him."

That was precisely what had happened. For some reason, the pink starfish had followed Sonic and Tails as they had gone for the plane, and none of the others had noticed his absence, not even SpongeBob. When they had taken off, Patrick had wedged himself between the wheels and the belly of the plane and clung on during the entire battle. But while everyone had been preoccupied with Sonic, he had somehow climbed onto the back of the plane, using loose plates on the bottom of the plane as footholds.

Unfortunately, while Tails' attention was on Patrick, he failed to notice that he was coming too close to the villains' mech. Like something out of a King Kong movie, it grabbed the _Tornado_ and held it firmly in its grip, nearly crushing the passengers.

"Aah! We're stuck!" the fox cried, desperately trying to free them with his controls. But it was no use.

"_Wheeeee!_ This ride is _fun!"_ Patrick declared, clapping his hands. He just barely escaped being crushed by the mech's fingers by moving up to the spot behind Tails.

"Just try getting out of this grip, foxboy!" Eggman sneered.

"No escape for you!" Plankton agreed.

Specter asked, "What should we do with the little pest now?"

"_Crush them!"_ Dr. Nefarious shouted gleefully, and proceeded to do so.

As the mech's fingers began crushing the plane, Tails worked even harder to escape. But Patrick did the impossible.

_He_ _walked right onto the arm and climbed up to the cockpit!_

Down on the ground, the others saw everything, thanks in part to Ratchet's Flux Rifle, which had a scope. He told them everything as it happened, and they hung onto every word.

"What's that idiot doin' now?!" he muttered, adjusting the scope to try and see the starfish.

In the mech's cockpit, the villains were enjoying the imminent defeat of their enemies, and failed to notice the starfish's presence. Suddenly he ran up to their control stations with wide eyes. "A video arcade! Can I play?! _Can I play?!"_

Dr. Eggman swiveled around in his chair to see the intruder. "What the…?!"

"How did that idiot squishie get in here?!" Nefarious fumed.

At that moment, Patrick found the one button that appealed to him the most: abig, shiny, red, button, with four words on it.

"_Self-destruct.__** Do not push!"**_

"Oooooh…I like this one! I wanna push it!"

"_Nooo!! Don't push it!!"_ the Evil Alliance screamed in unison.

Patrick pushed the button. Red alarms blared, and all the computer screens showed the timer counting down. Then a female, emotionless computer voice droned, "Thank you for pushing the self-destruct button. Please evacuate the mech before detonation. Detonation in T-minus 1 minute."

"Do something, Nefarious!" Eggman shouted, pounding on his controls.

The blue robot fought with his buttons and levers, but to no avail. "Everything's out! There are only the escape pods!"

"To the pods! To the pods!" Plankton screamed, and he leaped off of his chair to run. But the other three villains, in their hurry to escape, stomped on him. He managed to get back up and run after them, though with difficulty.

Of course, Patrick had enough sense to go back to the _Tornado_, where Tails was desperately trying to get free of the mech's hand. The hand let the plane go, and he flew out of the estimated blast radius. The others on the ground also moved out of the way.

The villains, however, weren't so lucky. As they were scrambling for the escape pods in the chest, the mech began to go out of control, and, using jet thrusters in its feet, it rocketed into the sky a few feet and then collapsed in the middle of the castle. They were delayed by this, but got into the four escape pods. But they ran into another problem.

"The thrusters for the pods are offline!" Plankton wailed.

"The only way out now is to let the force of the blast propel us out!" Nefarious told them. "I designed them to do that!"

"But it'll blow us to smithereens!"

"Nonsense! It will work!"

"How can you be so sure?!" Specter snapped. "You never even tested it, you bucket of bolts!"

"Err…" Specter had him there.

The computer voice interrupted, "Detonation in T-minus five, four, three, two, one…"

The four villains in their pods crossed their fingers and shut their eyes…

"…Have a nice day!"

Plankton opened his eye and began, "Thank y—"

_**Kabooom!!**_

The four pods were sent flying through the air into the horizon, with their occupants screaming in terror. The mech exploded into billions of pieces, taking out the castle with it. Whatever blocks of the ancient structure that weren't destroyed by the detonation were blown outwards. All that remained of the evil castle and the mech were those blocks, scattered, twisted metal parts, and a gigantic black crater. A nearby robot factory received heavy debris and also exploded, completing the destruction of the Evil Alliance's headquarters.

The heroes had taken cover at a great distance, and had watched with amazement as the buildings around them were decimated. When debris stopped falling, they carefully stepped out of the bunker they had used and made their way through the rubble to a clear spot. Tails landed the _Tornado_ there, and he and Patrick climbed out. For a while, no one said anything, and then, with his trademark grin cracking his face, Sonic broke the silence.

"Well guys…we did it."

There were a few more seconds of silence, and then the group erupted into loud cheers and laughs. Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles exchanged high-fives, and then Amy hugged Sonic. Spike and Jimmy thrust their Stun Clubs up in victory, and Ratchet and Clank did something similar, with the Lombax's N90 Hurricane and the robot's fist. SpongeBob brought out his rock guitar and started singing the Goofy Goober song; Patrick also sang and bounced up and down in a circle around the sponge. Overwhelmed, Copper sat down on a rock and watched them, fighting with the joyful tears coming into his eyes.

As they had promised, the eight heroes from foreign lands had defeated the Evil Alliance and had saved Animal Crossing!


	29. Chapter 28: Victory! and the Villains

Chapter #28: Victory (and What Happened to the Villains)

The news spread like wildfire across Animal Crossing. Big Boss and his cronies had been overthrown! Animals everywhere rejoiced! Soon the AC military was able to drive out and/or destroy all of the Evil Alliance's robots, tear down all the factories and plants, free all the enslaved animals and capture all of the spies; those spies, which included Resetti, Crazy Redd, and Lyle, were convicted and sentenced to prison. Double agents like Phyllis were at first investigated with suspicion, but then released. At the same time, construction was under way, and many villages were completely restored. The dead were buried in a memorial, the injured nursed back to health, and the lost were found and returned to their loved ones. It was one of the greatest times Animal Crossing had ever known in its long history.

Behind many of these restorations was the gang of heroes. Sonic, Ratchet, Clank, Spike, and Knuckles helped with the robot and spy hunting; Tails, Amy, Jimmy, SpongeBob, and Patrick helped with rebuilding towns and befriended the homeless. Soon after most of this was complete, Tortimer called for a national celebration at AnimaCity, and everyone, even the heroes, attended.

The victory celebration was like a mix of every holiday in the Animal Crossing calendar. There were Fourth of July flags and fireworks, Christmas lights on almost every tree, and plenty of Thanksgiving food for all. Tortimer even ordered for special carnival rides like Ferris wheels and merry-go-rounds to be put up. Games and contests were endless: sack races, food-eating contests, tug-of-war, and so much more! Everyone laughed, talked, ate, and drank the night away, and there was no sign of unhappiness on any animal's face.

But perhaps the best part of the night was the medal ceremony. Tortimer gave a long speech about the war with the Evil Alliance and some of the horrible crimes they had committed. But he did not forget the ordinary animals that had put their lives on the line to free their country. He awarded Tom Nook and his sons, Copper, Booker, and K.K. Slider Medals of Valor for their service. At the end, the old tortoise then said that although these animals had fought well, the real heroes of the war were the outsiders who had been willing to give everything for this country's independence. He called them up to the Wishing Well and awarded them each (yes, even Patrick) Medals of Honor. The audience clapped and cheered their hearts out for the gang.

After the awards, the eight heroes found many fans. Many young boys asked Ratchet, Clank, Spike, and Jimmy to show off their weapons, and several people wanted autographs. Unfortunately for them, they found themselves having several female fans as well. Sonic had it the worst, being an animal; wherever he walked he was constantly fought over by girls. It was pure torture for Amy to see other girls like her following her hero around; she nearly attacked the Able Sisters when they sheepishly introduced themselves to Sonic. The eight celebrities eventually hid away in the secret base under AnimaCity's Police Station, which Copper had decided to keep for future development. They sat and talked about their experiences and adventures for the rest of the night. There was one matter that was on all of their minds, and Sonic ended up voicing it.

Whatever had happened to their archenemies?

* * *

Many miles away from AnimaCity, on a small island with thick jungles, Eggman came to, lying on his back on a beach. He sat up and walked for a while down the shore, but the beach and ocean stretched as far as the eye could see. There was also no sign of their escape pods; they had wrecked off the coast, and the villains had somehow managed to swim to the beach. He returned to find that his "friends" were waking up.

"Ugh…where are we?" Dr. Nefarious asked, knocking some sand out of his head.

"We are on an island, and no mainland in sight," the evil genius replied.

"I'm surprised your little pods got us that far," Specter muttered, and the blue robot glared at him.

"What do we do now?" Plankton said.

Nefarious clenched his metal hands into fists. "Find those conniving little squishie heroes and make them pay!"

"He meant how we get off the island, stupid," the white monkey snapped. Once again, Nefarious glared at him, but said nothing.

Suddenly Eggman got an idea. "Nefarious, do you still have your remote to contact your butler?"

Dr. Nefarious caught on and brought out his remote. But when he tried to use it, it wouldn't turn on. "Something must be wrong with the circuitry…help me with this, would you?"

For ten whole minutes, the two doctors toyed with the remote, trying to get it working. But nothing they did seemed to work. Then, impatient, Specter grabbed it from them, and opened up a panel on the back of it. He removed the two AA batteries inside it and held them up. "It's out of batteries, geniuses," he growled.

Eggman slapped his forehead, very embarrassed. Nefarious, on the other hand, snatched the device from Specter and looked at it for himself. When he saw that the monkey was right, he threw the remote into the water and screamed in fury. Strangely, he seemed to freeze in the middle of his scream, and out of his mouth came a broadcast from an Animal Crossing radio station for young kids. The song ended up being, of all things, "The Chicken Dance". Specter and Plankton snickered, but Eggman wasn't very amused.

"You foolish hunk of junk," he muttered. "If we can get batteries, we can still use that remote. Plankton, fetch it! Specter, snap him out of it. We don't need that song stuck in our heads."

Plankton ran into the water, and fifteen minutes later, he came back with the remote. When Eggman took it back, he collapsed in exhaustion; carrying it back had worn him out.

Nefarious, who had been whacked out of his frozen state by Specter's Stun Club, stamped his foot and yelled, "But where are we going to find batteries on this primitive island?!"

"For stupid animals, the natives of this land have decent technology," Eggman retorted. "We might find someone here with batteries. You never know. Now let's march!"

So the four villains trudged into the interior of the island. The jungle was dense, and there wasn't much of a path to follow, making the going hard. But their persistence was rewarded when they came upon a clearing. There were campfires and huts there, and several animals—lions—were walking about.

"Island inhabitants," Specter whispered. "They don't look technologically advanced enough to have batteries."

Dr. Nefarious yelled, "I say we enslave them and force them to send us home!"

Eggman forced him down to the ground. "Don't be such a fool! The best way to handle this is to deceive them. We just persuade them to give us supplies and then we can get back to our HQ. Specter, go talk to them."

With a grunt, the monkey walked into the village, and the islanders instantly surrounded him and poked him with spears. He explained the situation, but it didn't help. The tribe only found the other three and prodded them into the circle with Specter.

"We just want to get some stupid batteries and leave your island!" Nefarious protested.

"But we like intruders," said one lion with a creepy smile. "We like them very much." His fellow tribesmen also stared at the four with same look.

Then all four of them realized that those were _hungry_ looks. Plankton panicked.

"_Aaaaaahh!! Cannibals! Help! Murder! Police!"_

He ran away, and the others followed suit with the islanders on their heels. They ran through the thick rainforest, constantly falling and getting up, getting whacked by tree branches, and nearly being caught by the islanders' traps. But then they must have crossed a border to the lions' territory, because they halted and turned back. They rejoiced for a moment, but then a tribe of tigers surrounded them. Suddenly the lions, who had changed their minds, raced in and began to fight with the second tribe; they were constantly warring with each other. The villains took advantage of that to flee again for the beach.

Suddenly, as they were running past a large, knotted tree, they heard a voice call out, "Sir, would you mind helping me?"

They looked up, and were surprised to see Lawrence hanging upside down by a rope; he had been caught by one of the tigers' traps. The villains worked to get him down, and Nefarious demanded, "How did you get here, Lawrence?!"

The robot butler cleaned himself up while he answered. "I picked up the signals of your pods and came via my own pod, which, unfortunately, crashed in the ocean. When I found your pods, I radioed the remainder of our robot army for help. Their transport is on the way."

"When will it get here?" Specter asked.

"…At best, seven days."

"Seven _days?!"_ Nefarious bellowed. "That's too long! They need to be here _now!"_

He yelling attracted the attention of yet _another_ tribe of islanders: bears. They closed in the four once more, licking their chops.

"Lions, tigers, and bears!" whimpered Plankton.

Lawrence gulped. "Oh my."

The Evil Alliance somehow broke through the ring of bears and raced into the jungle again. Revenge on the eight heroes was now far from their minds; now they only wanted to survive on the island until the robot transport came to rescue them…

It was going to be a _long_ week.


	30. Chapter 29: Farewell, Brave Heroes!

Chapter #29: Farewell, Brave Heroes!

Many weeks later, down at the AnimaCity shoreline, Sonic, Ratchet, Knuckles, and Spike were sunning themselves on towels in the sand when they heard someone shouting. They turned to see their friends running up to them.

Sonic lifted up his sunglasses and asked, "What's up, Tails?"

"The train carrying all the humans is coming!" his sidekick replied.

"So why is that a big deal?" asked the red echidna.

Jimmy exclaimed, "The Professor and Natalie are supposed to be on that train! Come on!" He took off, and the four sunbathers struggled to gather their things and follow him.

They raced to the station, where the locomotive was already coming to a stop. Porter opened the door to the passenger car, and a parade of humans filed out. The heroes avoided being seen until they spotted an old man in a lab coat and a teenage girl with pigtails (is that what it's called?) coming out. Spike and Jimmy raced up to greet them, and the others hung back until they were introduced. Tortimer was also present to tell them about the boys' deeds. The two were quite amazed by the story.

The Professor frowned, twirled his mustache, and inquired, "Do you have any idea where Specter is now, boys?"

Spike sighed and shook his head. "Sorry, Prof., not a clue."

But Jimmy remained optimistic. He brought out his Monkey Net, held it up, and declared, "But we'll catch him again someday!"

Natalie allowed herself a small smile. "I guess we will."

The train whistled, drawing the humans' attention back to it; it was time for them to leave. Spike turned to the other heroes, shrugged, and said, "Well, it was fun and all, but it's time we go back home."

"Maybe we'll meet again for another adventure!" Jimmy said. "Wouldn't that be great?"

They said goodbye one last time before boarding the train. The remaining gang waved until the train was long gone. Then Ratchet folded his arms. "Well, it's about time for Clank and me to split too. Everybody back home is gonna be wondering where we are."

"Wasn't your ship broken?" SpongeBob asked.

Clank, who was positioned on Ratchet's back, answered, "With assistance from Tails, we have managed to restore the ship to full working order."

The yellow sponge scratched his head. "Huh?"

Tails laughed. "We fixed it!"

The Lombax waved and said. "Well, see you guys around! Maybe we'll pass by Earth again to say 'hi'!"

Clank nodded. "It was a pleasure meeting you all. Farewell!"

The commando, with his companion on his back, trotted off to find their ship, which had been moved from its crash site at the train yard and parked by the Museum.

SpongeBob then said, "I guess I need to back home to Bikini Bottom. I hope Gary my pet snail did okay without me. Last time I left him so long he ate my couch! See ya later, guys!"

He walked back to the beach, but he jumped right into the ocean and jogged down to the ocean floor, whistling and singing.

"I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready…" Suddenly he halted. "Wait a minute…I think I forgot something. Maybe I left behind one of my souvenirs! Do you have everything, Patrick?"

He turned around, but saw no one with him. He had forgotten more than souvenirs.

"_Patrick!? _Where are you?!"

* * *

Half an hour later, Ratchet and Clank were relaxing in their starfighter as it cruised through the inky expanse of space.

"It's good to be back in space," said the Lombax with a sigh.

"I must agree," Clank said.

"I'm glad we left. Earth was starting to get boring."

"Ratchet, we only visited Animal Crossing."

"Well, actually, Patrick was really starting to annoy me. I'm glad we're far away from him.

Suddenly a hidden compartment opened, and you can guess who tumbled out.

"Pickled cheesecake!" the pink starfish exclaimed.

Clank's green eyes brightened in surprise. "Oh my."

"What's a Solana Galaxy?" Patrick asked, cocking his head.

Space cannot conduct sound, but if it could have, Ratchet's scream would have been heard by Earth several light-years away.

"_Noooooooooooooooo!!"_

* * *

Back in Animal Crossing, Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy were in Acre A-5, where Tails' plane had once again been parked. He checked it over before announcing to his pals that the _Tornado _was ready to fly again. Then Tom Nook and Nooklings, Tortimer, Copper, Booker, and K.K. Slider appeared.

"So you guys are gonna split too?" the white dog asked.

"You sure don't want to stay any longer?" Nook asked. Beside him, his boys sniffled; they were going to miss the heroes.

Knuckles replied firmly, "We're sure. I've got a Master Emerald to guard, and I took more time than I should have."

"Whatsa matter, Knux?" Sonic teased. "Worried that Rouge will steal it again?" He ducked as the echidna swung a punch at him, and then Knuckles began to chase him around the plane. Amy watched from one of the extra seats Tails had installed behind his, and giggled at their antics.

Tails fired up the _Tornado's_ engine, and Knuckles, who was winded from his fruitless chase, climbed into the seat behind Amy. Then the pink hedgehog realized that there weren't any seats for her hero. "What about you, Sonic?" she asked.

"I'm running," he replied, and he wore a grin that said he wouldn't prefer anything else.

Tortimer came forward to shake his hand good-bye. "Happy travels to ya, Sonic! And good luck with that Eggman guy!"

"Thanks, Tortimer!" He looked up at his fox friend and gave him a thumbs-up. "Okay, Tails, let's hit the road!"

The biplane soared into the air and followed the train tracks leading westward. The blue hedgehog ran along the tracks with a confident smirk, ready for his next adventure. With his friends tagging along behind him in the air, Sonic the Hedgehog raced away into the sunset.

The animals watched him and the blue plane vanish from their sight. Then they turned away and walked back in the direction of the Wishing Well.

Tortimer heaved a sigh. "Well, that's that."

"All of them are gone, off to find another heroic quest," Tom Nook said, waving one paw towards the setting sun.

"I hope they come back someday," Timmy said.

Suddenly a huge turtle-like reptile jumped in front of them and blasted them with his flame-breath.

"_I am the almighty __**Bowser**__, King of the Koopas!"_ he roared. "You and your people are now my subjects!"

Then two humans dressed in red and green appeared. Yep, you guessed it…_Mario and Luigi!_

"Hold on, a-Bowser! You're a-being a bad boy!" Luigi reprimanded, waving one finger.

Mario raised a fist and declared, "It's-a Mario time!"

Copper let out a groan. _"Here we go again!"_

* * *

And that's a wrap, folks! We're finally done! Huzzah! Finally; all those years of hard work paid off! I'm finished! _Yahoo!_ (does happy dance)

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed my humor fic, and I'm very thankful to everyone you reviewed. So, before this fic officially comes to a close, I want to make some acknowledgments to those who really helped me and supported this fic as it was being written:

First and foremost are **Fanfiction Fox** and **Johnny Lombax**. They are my younger brothers, and are fans of some of the franchises used in this story (namely Ratchet & Clank). It was Fanfiction Fox's love of SpongeBob (hence SpongeBob- and Patrick-like antics) a few years back that inspired many of Patrick's random statements and crazy actions in this story; without that this might have flopped as a humor story. Thanks a bunch, guys! ;D

Of course, I have to give a hats-off to **Nintendo**, who created the awesome Animal Crossing franchise. While I'm at it, I'll give a nod to **Sony/Ubisoft**, **Insomniac Games**, **Nickelodeon**, and **SEGA** for creating the four franchises that inspired this crossover.

And why not salute the eight heroes themselves: **Spike & Jimmy**, **Ratchet & Clank**, **SpongeBob SquarePants & Patrick Star**, and **Sonic the Hedgehog & Miles "Tails" Prower**! If even one of them wasn't in this story, it would be very different.

And since this is the 2nd version of this story, I want to add another acknowledgment to this long list. I want to thank **C.S. Bernard** for writing the review that pointed out the mistakes that I have corrected in this version.

Next up are the reviewers who...well, reviewed, the most! Thank you for your support, **Chibi Cougar**, **Dark Kyotoa**, and **Shelby the Hedgehog**! If I missed someone, I apologize. So, to cover all bases, **thank you _everyone who reviewed!!_**

As a final note, I did get a few reviews asking about a sequel. I _am_ considering it, but I don't want to promise a yes or no; there are so many other stories I would like to do. But there is a new Animal Crossing game coming out this November, so that _might_ just inspire me. In a few words, _I'm only thinking about it!_ No guarantees!

And now, I, Hoverbike Girl, am signing off, for the _last_ time, on this story. Until the next fanfic, farewell! (gets on Hoverbike and drives off into the sunset)


End file.
